A Tennessee-based health care startup has opened its third infusion therapy clinic in Maine in less than a year.
Local Infusion, which offers infusion therapies to those with autoimmune diseases, saw its first patient at its new Bangor facility on Wednesday, said Kamiu Lee, the company’s chief commercial officer. The company also has outpatient clinics in Augusta and South Portland, which opened in May and August of last year, respectively.
The new clinic gives patients suffering from chronic conditions another treatment option in Greater Bangor.
The outpatient clinic is more affordable than receiving care in a hospital, she said.
Northern Light Health offers chemotherapy, immunotherapy, hormone therapy and other treatments at its five infusion facilities in Maine, including one in Brewer, according to its website. St. Joseph Hospital and Penobscot Community Health Care in Bangor also offer infusion therapy.
“We have heard from patients, referring providers and payers that they needed our care model in Bangor,” Lee said.
Local Infusion was founded in Nashville, Tennessee, in 2021. It opened its first clinic in Concord, New Hampshire, in December 2022 and opened another one in Bedford a few months later.
The facility at 625 Broadway in Bangor offers infusion therapy for asthma, Crohn’s disease, osteoporosis, psoriasis and rheumatoid arthritis, among other conditions. Local Infusion treats nearly 40 conditions and offers 50 drug treatment options, according to its website.
The company also works with select insurance plans to offer immunotherapy for cancer patients, Lee said.
In Maine, Aetna, Anthem, Cigna, Community Health Options, Harvard Pilgrim, Humana, Martin’s Point Health Care, Medicare and Wellcare are insurance plans that have Local Infusion as an in-network provider, she said.
Local Infusion sends a text message to a patient within roughly two hours of receiving a provider’s referral, she said. They receive an onboarding form that takes a few minutes to fill out on their cellphones.
Local Infusion is building a clinic in Connecticut. It also plans to expand in New Hampshire and New Jersey, Lee said.
“We’re always looking at potential sites in Maine and New Hampshire because we’re already there,” she said. “We look at the demand and where services are needed.”
Local Infusion’s clinic in Bangor is in Building A at 625 Broadway. It is open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Sunday, by appointment.