Florida Blue to open Sanitas Medical Center in Crossroads Square

A third Florida Blue Sanitas Medical Center has been identified for Jacksonville, this one in the Crossroads Square shopping center in Southwest Jacksonville.

The first opened Jan. 2 in the Regency area of Arlington. The next two in Crossroads Square and in the St. Johns Square II shopping center are scheduled to open in early 2025, said Aleizha Batson, Florida Blue senior regional communications lead for North Florida.

Batson had no update on a fourth that was expected to open early next year in the Hyde Park area of Normandy Boulevard and Interstate 295 in West Jacksonville.

The medical care centers serve Florida Blue customers, original Medicare and self-paying patients ages 50 and older. The health centers serve as the primary care provider and serve walk-in patients, but do not have emergency room services.

Health insurer Florida Blue and its parent company, GuideWellMutual Holding Company, opened the first Jacksonville Sanitas at 9400 Atlantic Blvd., Suite 11, in the Regency Park shopping center in the Arlington area.

At Crossroads Square, the city is reviewing a building-permit application for Sanitas to renovate 5,500 square feet of space at 8102 Blanding Blvd., Unit 29, at an estimated project cost of $2.15 million. The site is at northwest Blanding Boulevard and I-295.

No contractor has been identified. Gensler of Miami is the architect.

A brochure for Crossroads Square indicates the space will be behind Kids Empire. Floor & Decor anchors the shopping center.

As reported, the city is reviewing plans for the St. Johns Square II center is at 11160 Beach Blvd., Unit 128, at southwest Beach Boulevard and St. Johns Bluff Road. That is considered the Windy Hill and Sandalwood area of Southside.

Skyline Construction Inc. is the contractor and Gensler is the architect for the estimated almost $1.8 million tenant build-out of 5,025 square feet of space. Plans indicate six exam rooms along with a lobby, dispensary, administration and physician offices and other space.

At Regency Park, the construction build-out cost for the 8,752-square-foot Regency Park Sanitas was $3 million. OliverSperry Renovation & Construction Inc. of Tallahassee was the contractor.

Batson initially said the newest centers would open Jan. 1.

"The plan to open additional offices has been modified slightly for early 2025," Batson said July 17.

A site has not been identified for the third of the three in the Hyde Park neighborhood.

"Florida Blue's mission is to help people and communities achieve better health. Central to our commitment to the Jacksonville community is ensuring that we increase access to affordable, high-quality, and patient-centered health care in the region," Batson said.

Batson said previously the centers have "dedicated care teams to provide Florida Blue members personalized and comprehensive primary care, walk-in care, pharmacy dispensing, diagnostics and testing, as well as educational programs for wellness, mental health and management of ongoing health concerns."

She said virtual care also is available and patients can schedule a visit with their care team from home, or wherever convenient, for management of chronic conditions, help with medications, coordination of care and social support. Patients can also access immediate care with 24/7 on-demand virtual support via phone, video or chat.

At Regency Park, hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday. It opened with a staff of 14 with a doctor, a nurse practitioner and a mental health counselor on duty.

"We really value that provider-patient relationship. Patients are going to get more time with the providers – up to 40-minute visits," said Alicia Zoya, GuideWell Health director of Clinical Services, in December at the Regency Park center before it opened for business.

In addition to examination rooms, the facility has an on-site lab, pharmacy, X-ray, electrocardiogram and ultrasound testing. There are no plans for MRI equipment.

Medical social services include Zumba, yoga and cooking and nutrition programs. Transportation can be arranged for those needing a ride for appointments.

The Sanitas website lists 67 offices in the United States in Florida, New Jersey and Tennessee.

The 56 in Florida comprise 15 each in Miami and Orlando, nine in Broward, six each in Palm Beach and Tampa, four in Tallahassee and one in Jacksonville.

The Sanitas parent company is based in South America. Florida Blue helped bring Sanitas to the United States more than a decade ago, and Sanitas-USA , which operates the Florida Blue Sanitas Medical Centers, is headquartered in Miami, Batson said.

The Sanitas website says Colsanitas started in 1980 in Colombia as an insurance company and in the 1990s developed an infrastructure of hospitals, medical centers, lab, dental and vision centers.

It began expanding in 1994 that led to operations in Venezuela, Peru, Brazil and Mexico.

In 2014, it expanded into the U.S. through an alliance with GuideWell, which includes Florida Blue (Florida's Blue Cross and Blue Shield plan).