ZoomCare clinics in Vancouver will now accept Medicare and Medicare Advantage insurance plans.
ZoomCare, a network of neighborhood clinics with three locations in Vancouver, offers same-day urgent care and some primary care services seven days a week. The clinics also offer mental health, dermatology, podiatry and women’s health services.
Medicare is the federal health insurance program for patients 65 and older, while Medicare Advantage is the private insurance that offers additional benefits such as dental, vision and prescription drug coverage beyond what traditional Medicare provides. ZoomCare’s integration of Medicare comes at a time when the number of providers who accept the federal insurance has declined, according to the Healthcare Leadership Council.
“Many Medicare patients are struggling to find providers and are faced with long wait times for appointments,” ZoomCare CEO Jeff Fee said in a news release. “ZoomCare is eager to fill this important need in our communities with high-quality, convenient access to care for such a significant portion of our local population.”
“We continue to see established patients who become eligible for Medicare so they can continue their relationship with their primary care clinician,” Vancouver Clinic Marketing Director Kelly Love said. “Navigating the complexities of Medicare can be daunting for many patients. We reach out to our patients as they become eligible for Medicare to make sure they have the resources they need to consider options and costs in making informed decisions about health care.”
Vancouver Clinic also accepts new patients with traditional Medicare to be seen for specialty care in nearly all areas. However, the clinic currently does not accept new, unestablished traditional Medicare patients for primary care. A 2022 survey of Washington medical providers revealed that 50 percent of practices have reduced patient access due to staffing shortages. In 2021, Clark County reported that there was only one primary care physician for every 1,320 patients.
Vancouver Clinic suggests its Medicare patients choose a Medicare Advantage plan that offers everything that traditional Medicare covers, along with those extra services, Love said.
Last summer, ZoomCare transitioned to a Medicare-certified software platform called Athenahealth, which allows the company to share electronic health records between providers.
“ZoomCare Super clinics handle most emergency needs in just over an hour, including intake, lab work, X-rays, CAT scans, ultrasounds or other procedures,” the company said in a news release. “Using a certified software platform also lets ZoomCare establish partnerships with large health systems and insurance plans to increase patient access to primary, urgent, emergency and specialty care.”
ZoomCare operates three clinics in Vancouver: Grand Central, 2510 Columbia House Blvd., Suite 107; Mill Plain and 164th, 902 S.E. 164th Ave., Suite 400; and Salmon Creek, 910 N.E. Tenney Road, Suite 101.
Editor’s note: this article has been updated to clarify Medicaid reimbursement rates tend to be much lower than Medicare.
