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India-based booking service Practo joins forces with Uber

Practo users in India, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore who book an appointment on its app will be able to see the closest Uber available when they get a reminder alert for their appointments.

Uber gets name dropped so often in healthcare, it’s probably inevitable that companies would seek to partner with the car service. Practo, a digital health company that developed a booking service app for people to use for healthcare appointments has developed a partnership with Uber, according to a company statement.

Practo users in India, Indonesia, Philippines and Singapore who book an appointment on its app will be able to see the closest Uber available when they get a reminder alert for their appointments.

Users can click the reminder notification and complete the booking process. New users who book their first appointment on the Practo app can use a promotion code for two free rides with Uber through the end of the year.

The app will inform users how much the estimated fare is and how long it will take Uber to arrive. It will also include the destination address at the start of the trip.

It’s an interesting development because lack of transportation can hinder access to appointments, but Uber’s price tag is not exactly cheap. So although the service may be useful for some, it probably will not solve access issues for everyone.

In August, Practo raised $90 million in a Series C round. The company’s booking service is only one part of the business. It also has a clinical management platform. At the time of the fundraise, the company said it would use the new funding to bring these tools to 65 more cities in India from its current level of 35 and expand from a presence in three countries to 10.