Urgent Care Part of Geisinger Plans for New Lock Haven Facility

LOCK HAVEN – Geisinger has announced its new Lock Haven facility will feature a walk-in urgent care center. The new structure will be a two-story facility at Spring and W. Fourth Streets, the old Lock Haven High School practice fields.

Geisinger detailed its Lock Haven plans as it joined Highmark Inc. on Tuesday in announcing completion and details of a previously announced “clinical joint venture.”

The announcement provided planned improvements to health care in north central Pennsylvania. In addition to the Lock Haven service expansion, Geisinger announced a three-story hospital to be built in Muncy Township, east of Williamsport.

Geisinger spokesman Marc Stempka told therecord-online the new Lock Haven building will replace and expand on services currently offered at the firm’s Bellefonte Avenue site. He said the future of that structure is to be determined.

As for a timeline, Stempka said a groundbreaking likely will occur in late spring or early summer of this year, with an opening date sometime in 2020.

A Geisinger/Highmark release said offered services will include, in addition to urgent care, adult and pediatric primary care offices and imaging and lab services. The new facility will also house physical and occupational therapy, as well as a specialty clinic with dermatology, cardiology, gastroenterology, surgery and women’s health services.

The Geisinger-Highmark announcement said the agreement creates a new, not-for-profit health care organization that includes existing Geisinger locations and development of new facilities to “expand access to care for those who need it most in a four-county region covering Clinton, Lycoming, Sullivan and Tioga counties. The new health care organization will include existing Geisinger Clinics and Careworks Urgent Care facilities in the Lock Haven and Williamsport areas to serve as key access points to care in the new health care organization.”

Geisinger late last year had completed its $1.93 million purchase of several connected third ward Lock Haven holdings as part of its plan to build a new health services clinic.

Geisinger in December purchased two plots, one owned by Town Homes at Susquehanna Square LP for $480,000, the other from Shaner Investments Lock Haven Hotel LP for $700,000. Those purchases follow a closing earlier last year in which Geisinger paid Patrick and Pamela Bigatel of Seattle $750,000 for a parcel containing five town houses abutting W. Fourth and Spring Streets.

They were recently torn down to make way for the new Geisinger facility.

Highmark Inc. is one of America’s largest health insurance organizations. Together with its “Blue-branded” affiliates, Highmark comprises the third-largest overall Blue Cross and Blue Shield-affiliated organization in the country. Highmark operates health insurance plans in Pennsylvania, Delaware and West Virginia, serving some 4.6 million members.