Dive Brief:
- One Medical is expanding into primary care business into San Diego County, its ninth metropolitan market, the company announced Tuesday.
- Early next year, San-Francisco-based One Medical will open three new offices for patients in the Southern California county.
- As part of the launch, One Medical will be partnering with UC San Diego Health to coordinate and streamline primary and specialty care for consumers and employers in the community.
Dive Insight:
The announcement comes as providers and payers are looking for less-costly, easy-to-access options for patients.
Companies like One Medical offer patients same-day appointments and virtual care options. Members in San Diego will have 24/7 access to One Medical providers and staff through its app-based video visits, messaging and voice options.
“The relationship with One Medical complements our larger strategy of helping the community get timely, convenient access to primary and specialty care resources close to home,” Patty Maysent, CEO of UC San Diego Health, said in a statement.
In a 2017 Advisory Board Company survey, 57% of hospital leaders said their chief concern was improving patient access to outpatient settings. Their next major concern was reducing costs. This comes as hospitals are facing shrinking volumes and rising expenses.
Primary care clinics are one option. According to a PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Health Research Institute report, there are more than 3,000 retail clinics in operation nationwide, and one in three consumers has used one.
With San Diego, One Medical’s footprint covers nine major U.S. markets. The others are Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C.
A year ago, One Medical named Amir Rubin, former executive vice president and divisional CEO at UnitedHealth’s Optum, to be the company’s CEO. Rubin served as president and CEO of Stanford Health Care from 2011 to 2016.