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Does Urgent Care Take Insurance?

When experiencing the sudden onset of symptoms such as a sore throat or experiencing a minor trauma, you’ve perhaps wondered whether you should attempt to get in with your primary care physician, head to urgent care, or go to the emergency room. Nevertheless, these three health care choices can often come with different price tags.

How Much Does a Visit To Urgent Care Cost?

On average, urgent care costs are pretty low in comparison to a doctor’s visit. According to Debt.org, urgent care visits cost about $150.

Urgent care is an excellent choice for those who want same-day treatment for a non-life-threatening injury or illness.

If you find that you require care on the weekend or that you can’t get in with your primary care provider, urgent care may be your best option.

Many urgent care centers are open into the evening and are open on weekends. In addition, most urgent care centers don’t require you to make an appointment. However, if you’re looking to skip the line or wait at home, some facilities now enable you to make appointments in advance online.

If the staff can’t treat you or believe that your condition is much worse, they will usually prompt you to go to the emergency room.

There are even options like virtual care or E-visits, that may allow you to get care for certain common conditions without having to leave the house.

How Much Cheaper Is Urgent Care In Comparison To The Emergency Room?

A visit to urgent care typically costs much less than a trip to the emergency room. ER visits can cost anywhere from around $600 for a minor problem to well more than $3,000 for a serious and complex health issue or injury.
Even if you have health insurance, you can still expect to pay a great amount out-of-pocket until you reach your deductible.

According to debt.com, the cost of treating a non-life-threatening issue like strep throat at the ER can cost up to 5 times more than seeking treatment from an urgent care facility.

In addition to being more costly, a doctor may take longer to be seen in an emergency room situation as patients with more severe illnesses or injuries are usually seen first.

Does My Insurance Cover Urgent Care Visits?

While all major medical plans are needed to cover emergency services under the Affordable Care Act, some insurers may not consider urgent care as emergency care.

Nevertheless, most plans cover urgent care visits. Patients can typically expect to pay a copay or deductible for visits to urgent care treatment centers.

In some situations, your insurance may not be accepted by a given urgent care facility. If you are not sure if the facility takes your insurance, you can always call ahead.

If you are not sure if your health insurance plan covers urgent care visits, look at your plan details as soon as possible or enroll in it.

Plans that cover urgent care visits can be found here, on healthinsplans.org. Start shopping for a plan that meets your coverage requirements by entering your zip code where prompted on this page or by calling one of our licensed insurance agents

Resources and References:

• Virtual Care