In a move to bridge the gap in rural health care access, Butler County is seeing an expansion of urgent care facilities, with new clinics set to open in several underserved communities.

Driven by growing demand and longstanding disparities in access, the initiative focuses on reaching rural areas where residents often face long travel times and limited provider options. Health care officials hope to reduce nonemergency visits to local emergency rooms and improve health outcomes across the region by increasing the number of walk-in clinics offering evening and weekend hours.

To help meet growing demand, Pittsburgh-based health care provider UPMC has partnered with GoHealth to open 82 UPMC GoHealth Urgent Care centers. One opened in Butler Township in late July.

UPMC said the new urgent care locations provide convenient access to high-quality, on-demand health care.

“The centers incorporate advances in technology and GoHealth’s innovative operations with premiere health care from UPMC’s credentialed clinicians,” UPMC said in a news release. “The new UPMC-GoHealth Urgent Care joint venture provides a seamless connection to UPMC with integrated electronic health records and easy referral to specialized medical services.”

UPMC said the partnership also brings more ambulatory services, such as primary care, women’s health, orthopedics and radiology, to the communities that need them.

The Urgent Care Association defines urgent care services as medical examination, diagnosis and treatment for non-life or limb-threatening illnesses and injuries which accepts unscheduled, walk-in patients and is supported by on-site evaluation services, including radiology and laboratory services.

Dr. Amy Meister, president of Community and Ambulatory Services with UPMC, calls urgent care facilities the “front door to health care.”

“Even if it happens to be outside the scope of urgent care, come in and we will help you get to whatever that next step is,” Meister said. “If it’s wellness and prevention or maybe you need a heart transplant, just come to our door. We want to be welcoming to all and to be able to help with your health care journey.”

According to its website, GoHealth Urgent Care has more than 400 urgent care centers nationwide.

The new urgent care center in Butler is at 256 New Castle Road. It was previously a MedExpress and made the transition under UPMC and GoHealth in June.

GoHealth Urgent Care offers a range of services for nonlife-threatening illnesses and injuries, including treatment for cold and flu, allergies, asthma and infections.

It also provides on-site services like X-rays, lab work and COVID-19 testing, along with virtual visits and physicals.

“Many times people will go to the ER first because they don't know about us,” Meister said. “When doctors’ offices are closed, we are open and available seven days a week. We try to hone in on access as a key feature. We don’t want to stop you from going to your regular doctor. The goal is to augment the care that they have and keep that continuity in place.”

The most common reasons people go to GoHealth facilities are head colds, sinus infections, flu, urinary tract infections, sprains and strains, Meister said.

UPMC and GoHealth joined forces in October 2024 and the rebranding of MedExpress locations began this spring.

One thing UPMC really liked about MedExpress was its locations, as for the most part they were in rural and underserved communities.

“We know those urgent cares were the only access communities had to health care,” Meister said. “We thought it was important to help make sure those communities dependent on those facilities still had a great option for care. We also know that on-demand access is what people want.”

Meister said there are about 1,200 employees among UPMC’s 82 GoHealth locations, with each location seeing between 40 to 120 patients per day.

Each location is made up of physicians, advanced practitioners and an X-ray technician, as well as a licensed medical professional on-site, to meet clinical needs and write prescriptions.

UPMC also wants to expand telemedicine services in the near future and Meister said the health care provider is always listening to its patients’ needs as they evolve over time.

“What we hear from patients is they say they want us to be their primary care doctor,” Meister said. “We try to make sure we meet their needs as we listen to our customers. They want to see additional services under that same roof. Women’s health is a request, pediatrics and orthopedics are also hot requests.”

UPMC is not the only health care provider in Butler County with skin in the urgent care game.

Independence Health System has four urgent care facilities under the name FasterCare: Butler Commons in Butler Township, 147 Mulone Drive in Buffalo Township, 100 Innovation Drive in Slippery Rock and 21 Franklin Village Mall in Kittanning.

According to Dr. David Rottinghaus, president of the IHS physician and provider network, the type of care provided through FasterCare is very similar to that of UPMC’s GoHealth locations.

“As an urgent care, FasterCare is designed to provide quality, timely medical care for minor injuries and illnesses across all age groups,” Rottinghaus said. “We treat coughs and colds, strep throat, asthma, minor infections, including skin and urinary tract infections, lacerations and simple fractures.”

FasterCare locations also work closely with other areas of the health care system, such as the emergency room, when needed.

“Very importantly, we provide follow-up for individuals who do not have a primary care physician so they can establish a PCP,” Rottinghaus said. “We also will arrange for patients to see a specialist, such as an orthopedic surgeon for a fracture or lung doctor for asthma.”

Rottinghaus believes FasterCare helps patients and families navigate challenges, such as avoiding busy emergency departments and long waits when seeking urgent care.

“We also provide off-hours and weekend care when primary care physicians might not be open or available,” Rottinghaus said. “FasterCare also provides telemedicine for urgent care conditions, offering patients even greater convenience in accessing quality care.”

FasterCare is also looking into expanding access for occupational medicine and workers’ compensation patients and companies Rottinghaus said, but it doesn’t stop there.

“I anticipate that more preventative and specialty care will become more accessible through locations and services like FasterCare,” Rottinghaus said. “If we can smooth out the authorization process with insurance companies, we could also look to offer greater and more timely access to advanced imaging studies, such as MRIs.”

Helping drive the growth the urgent care industry is seeing is the Urgent Care Association, according to CEO Steve Sellars.

UCA is a trade association for the urgent care industry with a membership of more than 4,000 urgent care centers.

It provides accreditation and certification, clinical guidelines, continuing education and other resources to its membership to elevate care standards and ensure consistency across diverse practice models, Sellars said.

“Through its benchmarking tools, operational resources, vendor partnerships and strong professional community, UCA enables urgent care leaders to improve performance, navigate challenges and grow sustainably,” Sellars said. “UCA also advocates for fair reimbursement and policy recognition, working to position urgent care as a vital part of the overall health care continuum.”

According to the association, there were 452 urgent care centers in Pennsylvania as of October.

Sellars said the urgent care industry has grown about 10% annually since 2014 and is expected to grow an additional 6% per year by 2034, serving more than 200 million patients per year.

“The urgent care model continues to grow because operators are providing consumers with what they are looking for — convenient access to cost-effective everyday health care needs,” Sellars said.

Sellars said about one-third of emergency room visits in the United States can actually be done at urgent care facilities, saving patients money and time.

He said the urgent care industry is experiencing several dynamic trends that reflect both evolving consumer expectations and broader shifts in health care delivery.

“Telehealth remains a key component, expanding access and improving efficiency, especially in rural and underserved areas where urgent care centers are growing rapidly,” he said. “Operational improvements through technology — such as AI-driven triage, digital check-ins and integrated electronic health records are enhancing the patient experience and streamlining workflows.”

Moving forward, the association will focus on strengthening its advocacy efforts to ensure urgent care is recognized and supported within the broader health care system as the average number of days to wait for a primary care appointment continue to grow, Sellars said.

“Almost 50% of the primary care workforce is 55 years and older, many of which will retire in the coming years,” Sellars said. “Not enough primary care physicians are being produced each year to keep up with the demand of an aging population and urgent care operators are able to bridge the gap and continue providing convenient access to high-quality, cost-effective care.”

This article originally appeared in the November edition of Butler County Business Matters.