Dive Brief:
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Morristown, N.J.-based integrated healthcare system Atlantic Health System is working with MedExpress’ 11 neighborhood medical centers in New Jersey to improve urgent care and better coordinate care between the companies.
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The partnership will allow MedExpress’ urgent care patients to get care at an Atlantic Health System facility if advanced care is needed. MedExpress facilities, meanwhile, will “serve as an extension” to Atlantic Health System’s services.
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The companies said the relationship creates more community-based patient-centered care that will enhance healthcare access, lower costs and improve quality and patient experience.
Dive Insight:
Atlantic Health System is teaming up with MedExpress, owned by UnitedHealth Group's Optum. The partnership is the latest example of a health system seeking ways to expand their footprint without spending the capital needed to build a new facility.
A recent MarketsandMarkets report predicted the global urgent care center market will hit $26 billion by 2023. The driving forces behind the growth are healthcare organizations looking to lower costs, shorten wait times and meet the needs of a growing aging population.
Atlantic Health System has more than 400 sites of care across New Jersey, New York, Maryland and Pennsylvania, including six hospitals: Morristown Medical Center, Overlook Medical Center, Newton Medical Center, Chilton Medical Center, Hackettstown Medical Center and Goryeb Children’s Hospital.
MedExpress, meanwhile, offers walk-in treatment seven days a week, 12 hours a day, and provides services like X-rays, IVs, labs, minor surgery and treatment for broken bones, sprains and strains.