Frequently Asked Questions

Urgent Care offers patients quick and convenient access to care via phone or video for urgent care needs. Plus, it is an affordable option for treatment of common issues like sinus infections, rashes and more. Avoiding in-person visits saves patients travel and wait times and keeps them out of germy waiting rooms.  

First Stop Health members can talk to a doctor 24/7 within 7 minutes (on average). Using our mobile app, website or with a phone call, patients avoid waiting rooms and paperwork — and get the quality, convenient care they deserve. To learn more about our telemedicine solution, download our overview.  

Urgent Care is a convenient way to visit a doctor virtually for urgent care needs. At First Stop Health, our members can talk to a doctor 24/7 and within 7 minutes (on average). The steps are easy: 

1. Request a visit via app, website or phone
2. Wait for the doctor to give a call back 
3. Describe your symptoms so the doctor can diagnose your issue and provide a treatment plan  

For more information, you can read these steps to see how a visit is requested, performed and followed up. 

Urgent Care treats non-emergency, common issues like sinus infections, sore throats, earaches, dermatological concerns and more. Doctors can also advise on physical problems and answer medical questions. 

Urgent Care benefits members, employers and even benefits consultants in many ways. Read more about how telemedicine healthcare is changing the medical world. 

Insurance companies do offer urgent care, however, wait times are often long and visits can be rushed. For patients, carrier-embedded telemedicine requires registration and payment. For employers, urgent care visits are tied to the medical plan and impact claims like other healthcare costs. 

First Stop Health supports employers by guaranteeing high utilization and savings, offering employee engagement initiatives and providing detailed monthly reporting. For employees, we offer little-to-no consult fee, no pre-registration, access within 7 minutes (on average) to see a doctor and care that people love®. And for employers, there are no claims to impact healthcare costs. See here for specific statistics on how our Telemedicine differs from carrier-embedded telemedicine. 

At First Stop Health, we are proud to provide care that people love®. We have +80 patient and client Net Promoter Scores (NPS). See the results of our Client Survey here.  

Doctors at First Stop Health are board-certified, licensed and US-based physicians who are readily available to treat members in all 50 states. They also work with First Stop Health employees to deliver accurate medical information to all members. You can meet the doctors here to find out more about their personal lives and journeys. 

Yes! First Stop Health can customize plans with consult fees. Employees at the same company can have different consult fees based on their High Deductible Health Plans (HDHPs). 

First Stop Health supports a variety of industries and a range of group sizes. From manufacturing and professional services to healthcare and education, we can support employees with our virtual Primary Care, Urgent Care, and Mental Health solutions. Learn more about the utilization, ROI and savings for these industries. 

In today’s workforce, there are many barriers to getting care. Whether it’s avoiding missed workdays, inconvenience or high costs, employees are less likely to seek care – ultimately affecting their own and their employer’s productivity. Urgent Care is a great resource to support employees’ mental and physical health. To learn more about how urgent care can support employee productivity, see here.  

Urgent Care allows employees to access a licensed, board-certified doctor remotely via phone or video. When executed correctly, telemedicine delivers healthcare savings and high employee satisfaction. It can also be useful in employee retention and the hiring process!  

Learn more about the primary benefits to Urgent Care, and why every employer should offer it.

Acne is the most common skin condition in the U.S., affecting 40 to 50 million Americans. Most are teens and young adults, but acne can occur at any age. 

Clearing acne usually improves a person’s self-esteem, helping them feel happier and more confident. And getting treatment is easy with Urgent Care. Here’s how it works.

Healthcare costs are increasing and severe chronic disease diagnoses are becoming more prevalent, burdening both employers and employees. As a result of the pandemic, digital-first care is now a preferred healthcare option for many. With its convenience, easy access and low-cost, patients are turning to Urgent Care and other virtual care.

Here are a few need-to-know stats about the state of healthcare and virtual care in the U.S. 

Primary Care consists of three components:

Virtual primary care solutions offer urgent sick visits, scheduled chronic condition visits, and preventive care for whole-person health guidance all via phone or video. Employers can provide virtual primary care to employees and their dependents for easy, affordable access to care. Learn more about the three components of virtual primary care and how employers can utilize this solution here. 

Yes! Your Primary Care doctor will want to know every aspect of your health, and that includes your mental health. Your mental health is just as important as your physical health, and Primary Care supports both. Every small detail could be important for your primary care physician to know. Learn more about how virtual primary care supports both your physical and mental health here.  

Mental health and physical health are intricately interwoven — which is why it is so common and beneficial for primary care physicians to treat mental health conditions alongside physical conditions. 

When virtual care and in-person specialist care work in tandem, patients receive whole-person health guidance. With Primary Care, patients can meet with a trusted doctor quickly and conveniently, whether it’s urgent, preventive or chronic care management that is needed.

Primary Care allows trusted doctors to provide high-quality healthcare to patients — including preventive treatment, medication management, and support for chronic disease and whole-person wellness. Personal barriers such as cost, travel, time off work or arranging childcare deter people from seeking care. A primary care doctor shortage is also a barrier to getting care.

Through our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) principles, FSH offers an innovative health solution to LGBTQIA+ and Women+ populations. It is a solution that can provide culturally competent care by supporting equity of access, a safe and inclusive clinical environment, and a system to continually monitor and assess the efficacy of care. Read more about how virtual primary care can support culturally competent care here. 

Your first appointment with your doctor is a great opportunity to get to know one another. You can expect to talk about your current health concerns and goals, develop a health plan and discuss treatment options. Make sure to have your family health history and prescription information on hand. 

Preventive care typically consists of ongoing visits (at least one per year) with your virtual primary care doctor, who will address your health concerns and make sure you’re doing everything you need to protect your long-term health. Even if you’re feeling healthy, an annual wellness check is important for your long-term health. With routine wellness checkups aligned with USPSTF recommendations, patients engage in better preventive care or chronic care management for better whole-person health.

Virtual Primary Care offers a convenient, affordable and effective solution for many chronic health conditions. By providing more frequent, longer and personalized visits, virtual primary care keeps patients engaged in their treatment of: 

Virtual Mental Health is a convenient, readily available solution that gives patients access to a counselor in a safe space of their choosing. Counselors can help patients with grief, substance use, depression, anxiety, work/life stress, parenting, relationship problems, body image, money troubles and more. 

Patients can schedule a virtual visit with counselors to discuss mental health issues like grief, substance use, depression, anxiety, work/life stress, parenting, relationship problems, body image, money troubles and more.  

Mental health is about more than whether or not you have a mental illness – it includes the way you think, feel and act.

The most common topics include grief, substance use, depression, anxiety, work/life stress, parenting, relationship problems, body image and money troubles.  

Virtual Mental Health stands out from traditional Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs). While EAPs typically include a mental healthcare or counseling component, employers and their employees do not see the benefits they would expect. EAPs also have low utilization -- in fact, just 6.9% of employees in North America use their EAP each year. 

There are several mental health benefit options for employers to offer their employees. The options range from general wellness benefits like mental health days or free fitness classes to traditional therapy, employee assistance programs (EAPs), and virtual mental health solutions. For the former mental health benefits, they tend to be more expensive, are lower in value or have longer wait times. 

You may have heard of long-term counseling, where you regularly see your counselor for months or even years. Patients focus on a deeper exploration of the root causes of ongoing life issues. Short-term counseling takes a more solution-oriented approach. During this type of counseling, you’ll focus on identifying immediate solutions to the issue you are facing.

First Stop Health Mental Health can help treat depression. Through virtual mental health paired with virtual primary care, employers can offer a tried-and-true benefit to their employees to support them throughout their unique healthcare journeys. Medication therapy combined with counseling is an important treatment strategy for those struggling with depression.

Today, about 1 in 5 American adults are informal caregivers for an adult or child with special needs. To better support employees who are informal caregivers, employers can offer stress-free, convenient access to virtual care for anxiety, depression, grief and other mental health concerns. 

More than 40 million US adults have an anxiety disorder. Employers have the opportunity to support their workforce with virtual care. First Stop Health Primary Care complemented with Mental Health provides employees with whole-person care. Medication therapy combined with counseling is an important treatment strategy for those struggling with anxiety.