New trucker-focused clinic network aims to bring easy care to drivers

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The green dots represent existing UrgentCareTravel locations, and the blue dots represent locations the company intends to add. Slated to open in 2018 are locations in Baytown, Texas; Carlisle, Pennsylvania; Phoenix; West Memphis, Arkansas; Toledo, Ohio; Joplin, Missouri; Laredo, Texas; Spiceland, Indiana; and Hubbard, Ohio. Existing locations include Knoxville, Tennessee; Oklahoma City; Dallas; Cartersville, Georgia; Ruther Glen, Virginia; and Fontana, California. Click here to see the current locations on UrgentCare’s website.The green dots represent existing UrgentCareTravel locations, and the blue dots represent locations the company intends to add. Slated to open in 2018 are locations in Baytown, Texas; Carlisle, Pennsylvania; Phoenix; West Memphis, Arkansas; Toledo, Ohio; Joplin, Missouri; Laredo, Texas; Spiceland, Indiana; and Hubbard, Ohio. Existing locations include Knoxville, Tennessee; Oklahoma City; Dallas; Cartersville, Georgia; Ruther Glen, Virginia; and Fontana, California. Click here to see the current locations on UrgentCare’s website.

Truck drivers and fleets looking for low-cost medical service on the road have a new option in UrgentCareTravel, a growing network of clinics based in certain Pilot Flying J locations off of major highways. In addition to offering basic clinical service to drivers themselves, the company also can provide basic care to drivers’ family members, too.

The company currently has six locations, mostly in the southeast, but eight more locations will open across the country in 2018, says Mitch Strobin, UrgentCareTravel’s vice president of service management. A total of 40 locations are planned nationwide. All of the clinics will be located within Pilot or Flying J truck stops, says Strobin.

Though the clinics offer walk-in service to drivers, the company also offers a monthly, all-inclusive package for $80, which includes services for DOT medical certification, drug screening, access to 24/7 telemedicine and personalized care plans for drivers suffering from diabetes, high blood pressure, obesity and more. UrgentCare also offers family packages, costing $120 a month, that provide service for drivers and up to five family members. Neither package includes deductibles or co-pays, meaning all care is provided via the monthly charge.

UrgentCare’s goal is to provide drivers with greater access to convenient and affordable healthcare, says Strobin. “We’re truly serious about getting drivers healthy, for their sake, for their family’s sake and for their company’s sake,” he says.

The service is not a form of insurance and isn’t meant to replace health insurance. Instead, it’s meant to provide drivers a low-cost option for basic healthcare without expensive premiums or deductibles.

For fleets, Strobin markets the subscription clinic service as a way to recruit and retain drivers and as a means to lower the number of worker’s comp claims. Drivers who have minor injuries on the job or pain that qualifies as first aid care can receive quick and cheap service at the clinics, rather than burning time waiting visiting a doctor or, worse, an emergency room. Injuries requiring more than first aid care would still need to be handled as worker’s comp claims and handled outside of the UrgentCareTravel network.

Fleets who provide the service to drivers can also save on drug screening and DOT physical costs, says Strobin, as the two services are included in the subscription package.

The clinics are open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and are staffed by nurse practitioners.

For drivers diagnosed with diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and obesity, among others, the clinics provide drivers with health plans to help manage their disease, which includes packets of educational materials, a schedule of clinic visits and monthly phone calls from the nurse practitioners.

The clinics also use the standard health records system, allowing for transmission of clinical work back to drivers’ primary care physicians.

The telemedicine access offered by UrgentCareTravel’s monthly subscriptions are handled by WellVia, allowing drivers to contact doctors via phone or video chat 24/7.

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