SEEN ON GOOD DAY: Stand Alone ERs popping up in your neighborhood

STAND ALONE ER's COMING TO YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD:
Stand Alone ER's are popping up everywhere and they're equipped to do everything a hospital ER can do. Think of it as the new healthcare on demand!

"We want our health care and we want it now," says Philip Wessel an Associate Instructor of Health Management at UCF.

Wessel says these stand alone ER's are considered one of the newest and easiest ways to get health care. Most are being built within driving distance of popular neighborhoods, making the drive to a central ER obsolete.  However he says the convenience does come at a cost.

"A well insured family can see their family Doc for a co-pay of 20-30 dollars.  Some Centra Cares can cost $100 or more. And then these stand alone ERs, the co-pays are up to 300 dollars.  And if you're self pay, it could be up to $3000 to visit one of these stand alone facilities," says Wessel.

In 2016, there were 26 stand alone emergency departments in Florida.  Two years later the number has nearly doubled.  Eric Stevens the CEO of Florida Hospital Acute Care Services says they've opened two, one in Lake Mary and one in Winter Garden with two more locations in the works, one in Oviedo and the other in Waterford Lakes.

"The standard that we built these free standing ER's is the same standard we have at the hospital, says Stevens. If you're sick, or suffering chest pain, going to one of these is better than driving a long distance to get somewhere else."

The Lake Mary stand alone ER features state-of-the art everything. Watch the video to take a behind the scenes tour.

Stevens says they're anticipating a population boom in Florida, so this new Stand Alone ER trend is only going to grow.

"The state economist told us last year to expect 280-thousand people a year to move to Florida for the next 10 years at the mean age of 58 years old

So getting a doctor, on demand, isn't going away.