Exer Urgent Care, the largest urgent care chain in Los Angeles County, is quickly establishing a footprint in Orange County.
In March, Exer will open its third clinic in the county in a matter of months: a 5,500-square-foot facility in Costa Mesa on 17th Street, not far from Newport Boulevard and UCI Health Pacific Medical Plaza. The organization opened its first Orange County location in Huntington Beach in October, and another clinic in Irvine the following month.
“We’ve been working on this effort for several years on the front end,” Exer Urgent Care Chief Executive Robert Mahan told the Business Journal. “I can’t tell you how excited we are to be serving Orange County.”
Mahan, a San Clemente native, has worked in healthcare for 23 years and previously held leadership roles at Long Beach-based mental health center Elements Behavioral Health and Denver-based DaVita Kidney Care (NYSE: DVA). He joined Exer five years ago, when the organization had four total clinics.
Today, it has 26 Southern California locations and counting.
“What attracted me to Exer was the organization’s business model and mission of being a more comprehensive, affordable and expeditious solution to healthcare,” he said.
80% of ER Cases
Exer, co-founded by Cherlin Johnson and lead investor James Fay in 2013, bills itself as “the ER alternative that’s built and staffed by ER doctors.” Its current staff of 700 includes doctors who have, on average, 15 years’ experience in emergency medicine.
While Exer clinics don’t perform high-level surgeries, they tout more on-site capabilities than typical walk-in urgent cares, including X-rays, diagnostic tools, IV infusions and a pharmacy stocked with commonly prescribed drugs.
This allows the chain to treat up to 80% of ER patients, with significantly less waiting time—and at one-tenth of the cost, according to Mahan.
“It’s a combination of having the right tools and the right team that allows us to serve so many patients,” he added.
Growth Plans
Exer officials aim to approach 40 new clinics by the year’s end—between eight and 12 of which will open throughout Orange County alone. Once deployed, it plans to hire about 250 part-time and full-time staff.
The company invests north of $1 million into each facility; each is staffed with 20 to 40 employees, “depending on the community’s need,” Mahan said.
Its Irvine location is at University Town Center next to UCI; its Surf City location is in a strip center along Warner Avenue.
“The single-biggest reason we’ve been able to grow is through the community we serve. We are also well-capitalized and well-funded,” he said, noting New York-based firm Orangewood Partners and Providence Health as investors.
“So long as there is a community need for our services, we will continue to grow and scale our organization.”
