Third Missed ACL Tear by Urgent Care This Year

Today marks the third case of an ACL tear I’ve caught this year—each previously overlooked by an urgent care provider.
A young female athlete, the outside hitter on her school volleyball team, injured her left knee last month while landing from a jump. She went straight to a local urgent care, where the attending physician diagnosed a minor sprain and advised rest, assuring her it would heal in a couple of weeks. No imaging was ordered. No bracing or activity restrictions were recommended.
A month later, she was still in pain and unable to fully flex her knee. Her mother brought her to see me. On physical examination, I suspected a medial meniscus tear and questioned the integrity of her ACL, though the anterior drawer test was negative. But given her strength and athleticism, I couldn’t confidently rule out a tear based on that alone.
I immediately ordered an MRI to investigate the ongoing pain and limited range of motion. Her insurance denied the request—but her family, committed to answers, proceeded with the scan anyway.
The MRI revealed a full ACL tear and a medial meniscus tear.
These repeated misdiagnoses shake public confidence in our conventional urgent care system. The insurance denial—despite clear medical necessity—adds to the frustration. Perhaps it also explains why the public once cheered for a shooter who targeted the CEO of a major health insurance company. Tragic as it is, the outrage reflects a broken system where patients suffer delays, denials, and dismissals.
We can and must do better. Cases like this are why I created Hurgent Care!