In the United States, the cost of healthcare can be a deciding factor in whether or not someone decides to seek medical care. Even the cost of ambulances can make someone hesitate to call 911.
According to an article published in the National Library of Medicine (NLM) in 2021, one study showed that an urgent care center costs an average of $414 less than an emergency room visit for the same or similar issue.
But how do you know where to go?
According to the Cleveland Clinic’s Dr. Allan Capin, “If you attach the word ‘severe’ to your symptoms, you probably belong in the emergency department.”
According to the NLM article, more than 8 million patients enter urgent care facilities each year, saving Americans over $3.3 billion compared with if those same patients visited an emergency room instead.
The burden of deciding the severity of your illness does not lie solely on the patient, though, “I don’t want the patient to worry about, ‘Oh am I in the right place,’” Dr. Capin said, “Our job is to put you in the right place and take care of you regardless.”
With flu season here, illness can be inevitable, but discerning between a medical emergency or not can save you hundreds of dollars in medical costs.
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