Want to create an interactive transcript for this episode?
Podcast: A Health Podyssey
Episode: Urgent care centers cost more than you think
Description: The number of urgent care centers grew significantly in the last decade, thanks in part by private equity investments. They seek to lower health costs and be cheaper than the ER by conveniently providing on-demand care for easily treatable conditions. But, when looking at the economics, urgent care clinics may increase net health care spending.In a new research article published in the April 2021 edition of Health Affairs, Dr. Ari Friedman, assistant professor of emergency medicine, medical ethics, and health policy at the University of Pennsylvania, and colleagues studied the impact on urgent care centers...