Area hospitals closed outpatient and urgent care centers, and the University of Missouri canceled classes for Tuesday.

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My friends have all been rotating through urgent care centers and their kids have been out of school for weeks.

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And he started a small chain of urgent care centers called Solantic.

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Many may have been treated in physician offices or urgent care centers.

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Tom Salemi, editor of the Venture Capital Analyst Newsletter on Healthcare, says the clinics are cheaper to run than doctor's offices, urgent care centers, and ERs, because they have lower labor, equipment, and billing costs.

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More than 8, 000 urgent and immediate care centers across the country have opened with growth estimated at 8 to 10 percent annually, according to the Urgent Care Association of America.

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