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N.Y. Health Insurers To Offer Virtual Doc Visits
CWmike writes "Two insurance organizations in upstate New York said on Wednesday that they will offer their members and employers virtual physician visits beginning this summer, making New York the fourth state to provide these types of services. BlueCross BlueShield of Western New York, BlueShield of Northeastern New York and technology services provider American Well said the Online Care service will allow members to talk with physicians in real time through a private online chat network or through a voice-over-IP phone call. The service also offers video chat and instant messages. Members can sign on to the insurer's Web sites and look for physicians who are available online in various specialty areas."
Outsourcing doctors offshore.
I'm curious as to how much will be billed back through insurance. You have a standard fee just for going in to the office to see the doctor, now that the office is not being used how much of a 'discount' will you see.
I thought not.
"Please present the affected body part to your webcam."
First-contact doctors working directly for the insurance company sounds like a bit of a conflict of interest.
Even if you trust in them not to be simply bought off, their jobs may depend on how much their instructions cost. Dr Caring who believes suspect lumps should be biopsyed every time just to make sure they aren't cancerous is unlikely to have as long a term with the company as Dr Casual who tells the patients to just wait two weeks and see if it goes away on it's own.
Although this certainly sounds more sophisticated, the UK NHS offers an 'over the phone diagnosis' service, NHS Direct. Although the article mentions 'physicians' being used to monitor the network, how long will it be until they too are using unqualified staff to handle more routine cases?
The danger for misdiagnosis is huge, although they no doubt have a clause somewhere about it - they may just end up telling patients to visit their doctor in person for a proper check-up, which kind of defeats the object.
pay your virtual bill with virtual money from MMO's
The service also offers ... instant messages.
Dr: a/s/l?
Dr: to help me diagnose
but also a waste of time in a lot of cases. Case in point, my in-laws, who go to the doctor if they stub their toes.
I'm only slightly exaggerating, any little thing and off they go. It's unreal. If they knew about this, I'm sure they'd have a lot more "afflictions" to get "treated" by these doctors.
Sad.
Sent from your iPad.
"Dr. Astley will see you now..."
Hypocondriacs of the world REJOICE!!
Cwm, fjord-bank glyphs vext quiz
Eliza: Hi, I'm Dr. Eliza. How can I help you today?
Patient: Hi, I have a pain in the left of my chest. It's quite bad.
E: I'm sorry to hear that have a pain in the left side of YOUR chest is not feeling well.
P: Yeah... Uhh, do you know what it could be? It's getting worse.
E: I understand.
P: You understand what? My left arm is starting to feel funny.
E: Your problem is arm feel funny?
P: No, my problem is my chest! It's really painful, I can hardly breathe!
E: You can hardly breathe and your left arm is feel funny?
P: yes
E: I like this conversation! Do you like this can hardly breathe and your left arm is feel funny?
E: Hello?
Finally had enough. Come see us over at https://soylentnews.org/
Computer: you are now being connected to a doctor...
Doctor: Hi, how can I help you?
Mrs Smith: Hello! Well, I've been having back pain for a few months now.
Doctor: How old are you?
Mrs Smith: I'm 35.
Doctor: How much do you weigh?
Mrs Smith: Down to about 120lbs since my pregnancy last year...
Doctor: What are you wearing?
Mrs Smith: Ahh, what?
Doctor: A physical examination is necessary. Please go on cam and disrobe.
Mrs Smith: Umm, I'm not sure... are you really a doctor, that link in my email looked legit, but now I'm....
Doctor: brb...
Computer: Doctor has disconnected from chat.
Mods?
Lisa: Maybe I ought to check with the doctor. ... diagnose. [pushes
[Lisa, Bart, and Homer gather around Lisa's
computer. She starts a program that displays a
medical logo -- the one with two snakes wrapped
around a staff]
Snake 1: Welcome to "Virtual Doctor."
Snake 2: From the makers of "Dragon Quest," and
"SimSandwich."
Snakes 1 + 2: Enter symptoms now.
Lisa: Let's see. [types on keyboard] Crusty sores?
Homer: Yes.
Lisa: Horrible wailing?
Homer: Yes, yes!
Lisa: Any exposure to unsanitary conditions?
Bart: Duh! We're pigs.
Lisa: [finishes typing] Okay. And
a key]
Virtual Doc: You've got: leprosy.
Homer +
Bart: Leprosy?! Aaah! [point at one another] Unclean!
Bart: Unclean!
Homer: Unclean! Help us virtual Doc! Look at me -- I'm on
my knees.
Virtual Doc: Goodbye. [leaves the virtual office]
[Homer and Bart whimper]
Lisa: [to herself, Burns-like] Excellent.
... this offers some incentive to doctors to return/make phone calls in more competitive markets like Manhattan where doctors seldom spend more than 3-4 minutes in the diagnostic room and won't return calls
perhaps these insurance companies might even establish a reasonable co-pay and fee for such a service (can I dream?)
I just call my doctors office now. He calls back and calls in a prescription for me. Some times he charges for an office visit, some times he does not. Example. I get an outbreak of poision ivy at least once a year. If its not in my eyes and I don't think its bad enough for a steriod shot in the ass, I call him and he calls in a prescip for some steroid cream. I get sore throats occasionally, same thing.
No office, no staff, low overhead....think we'll see a drop in insurance premiums? Nope. They have to pay for that fancy camera and 'puter. I bet you'll still have to pay a co-pay, even.
Loading...
Your that guy who still tells Lewinsky jokes at parties, aren't you?
Skeletor. Har har har.
She starts a program that displays a medical logo -- the one with two snakes wrapped around a staff
Caduceus.
Just because you're paranoid doesn't mean there isn't an invisible demon about to eat your face
Does this also mean the end of the patient-gouging $75 office visit fee?
The only way I would consider something like this is if it was sans copay. Otherwise, any situation where it would be useful will be replaced by me just calling my doctor. Shockingly,you can actually call an upstanding doc for a quick question without going through the insurance co at all. And for any issues I wouldn't feel comfortable resolving over the phone, I am going in to the office anyway - the internet be damned.
Though after this program is in effect, I wouldn't be surprised if doctors refuse to take regular calls, only "paid" calls.
When the process begins, the doctor says, "Please state the nature of your medical emergency."
If you can read this, I forgot to post anonymously.
No need to go that far. Just cap welfare benefits at 6 months every 5 years, and the problem will fix itself.
"Please insert webcam into affected body part"
Burn FAT not OIL
How is this any better than a phone call?
The doctor still can't palpate anythying, nor even make a good visual examination since the quality is likely too poor to be of any use.
Answer? It's cheaper for the insurance company than a real doctor visit, and so saves them money, and you get inferior care for it, while they get increased profits.
Don't let them spin this as something good for you, it's just another way to reduce costs (and this time, care quality too).
Question everything
Many doctors I've gone to only listen to about half of what I say, so I have to repeat myself repeatedly to get the points across. Moving doctors to a chat room is a pretty silly idea. Anything a doctor can tell you in a chat room you can already find on WebMD or by googling.
Seems fair. Virtual money for a virtual visit...
I'm not really a web designer, I just play one on the Internet.
To keep their prices high, the AMA has prevented new med schools from being done. The last one was back in the 70's. So, part of the reason why docs get paid so much is that there is not enough of them. What is needed is for feds and states to say enough of this, come up with another standards groups, and start developing new med schools. I have written several congressmen and have suggested adding a med school at Colo State. Then have cut rate med school there, HOWEVER, the docs would only work in Colorado and would only do General lines (general practice, Peds, Ob/Gyn, Gen. Surgery, etc). Ideally, set up a state malpractice insurance for these docs, in which patients that use them would have to go through a different approach for suing. Finally, they would accept a different line of pay since they would not have the high med schools costs (i.e. pay up front, rather than down the road).
Now, insurances want to make cuts so they will outsource the docs, but not their expensive management. What a racket.
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
I've just written an in-depth article on the Notal Vision at home monitor for AMD sufferers, that is linked via a call center to a patient's retinal physician. The doc can monitor changes in retinal health of his patient, and arrange for an urgent visit if changes in vision require it. In this way, vision can be preserved/saved for those with late-stage dry AMD before it converts to blindness causing wet AMD. Here's the link: http://tinyurl.com/NotalVision Irv Arons