Pay-as-you-go primary care

Some are capitalizing on the uninsured, a variation on the in-store urgent care clinics:

This year, a company called QuickHealth opened several clinics in Northern California “” some in pharmacies, one inside a Wal-Mart “” offering primary care on a pay-as-you-go, first-come-first-served basis seven days a week. For $39, a patient can have a 15-minute consultation with a licensed physician. A comprehensive physical is $59, while on-the-spot cholesterol tests, rapid strep tests and diabetes screenings are $29 each. For $99, the clinic offers wound suturing (including local anesthetic and a return visit to remove the stitches), while $199 buys the HealthyLover package, including physical exam and H.I.V. and S.T.D. tests.

Related posts:

1. Look at what a focus on primary care will get you
2. Low-cost boutique care
3. Should primary care doctors embrace retail clinics?
4. How retail clinics will harm primary care and the public good
5. MinuteClinics: Reflects "the sorry state of primary care in America"
6. A bleak primary care future
7. How connected are you to a primary care doctor?

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Tagged as: diabetes, patient, primary care