Consumers See Retail Clinics as Option Outside of Health Care System
People without primary care physicians who do not regularly use the traditional health care system are seeking care at retail clinics, according to a study published this month in the journal Health Affairs, the Chicago Tribune reports.
For the study, researchers from RAND analyzed information on more than 1.3 million visits to retail clinics from 2000 to 2007.
More than 40% of patients who visit retail clinics are ages 18 to 44, according to the study. Only 23% of that demographic group visits primary care physician offices.
Consumers are most drawn to the clinics because of convenience and price and often are less interested in contacting a primary care physician, the study's authors found.
NIH and the California Healthcare Foundation funded the study (Japsen, Chicago Tribune, 9/25).
CHCF publishes California Healthline.
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