A single trip to the emergency room may leave you in crippling debt. According to The Washington Post, “The average emergency room visit now costs 40 percent more than a month’s rent.” Going to the ER can, moreover, be very much like playing a game of Russian Roulette. In other words, costs vary — a lot. Treating a sprained ankle may easily set you back $24,110; select emergency departments, however, will charge just $4 for the exact same care. Luckily, there is a better way. There is a convenient — and reasonably-priced — alternative to the emergency room. What is it?
Urgent Care Facilities Offer Treatments A Third of The Cost — Or Less!
“The average cost of a visit to the ER for over 8,000 patients across the U.S. was $2,168,” The Atlantic writes. A trip to an immediate care center, on the other hand, works out to be an average of only $71 to $125. By keeping costs at a minimum, urgent care patients are also much less likely to end up working with debt relief professionals. (That is, however, a popular option for Americans with ER bills in the tens of thousands.)
Immediate Care On Weekends and Holidays
Only 22% of patients in hospitals’ emergency departments are sick enough to warrant ER care, The Atlantic continues. A lot of patients end up in the ER because they believe that, when traditional physicians and doctors’ offices are closed, there is nowhere else to go. This simply isn’t true. Urgent care centers are open weekends and holidays — and select, 24 hour centers are open all night and all day.
A Growing Number Of Urgent Care Locations Offer Specialty Treatments
Unlike the ER, immediate care clinics are not for sprains, strains, and similarly urgent cases only. The same centers also offer reproductive health and family planning services for men and women, for example.
Unless you have a life-threatening emergency, you may want to consider cheaper — and much more practical — alternatives. Urgent care centers can save you thousands, and you can visit them on weekends and holidays, too! For more information see this.
