Consult A Doctor Unveils Next Generation Consumer Driven Telemedicine Program for the Health Insurance Industry

MIAMI, June 23 /PRNewswire/ --

-- Access to Appropriate Care in Lowest Cost Setting

Providing healthcare in the home, the least expensive care setting, shifts the benefit consumption from more expensive settings, such as physicians' offices and emergency rooms, therefore reducing cost.

-- Grow membership -- 90% of consumers demand better access -- Provide immediate access to a physician 24/7/365

Offering consumers immediate access to a physician is a revolutionary transformation in how healthcare benefits are provided.

-- Provide Affordable Access to Healthcare for the Underinsured and Uninsured

The Company's customizable telemedicine platform provides powerful management of proper utilization to provide the right solution to the right population. The Healthcare plan sets parameters matching plan's financial contribution and member's out of pocket co-pay.

-- Strengthen relationships with providers

The Consult A Doctor telemedicine service offers physicians a new, more flexible way to practice. They can deliver needed healthcare, for a fee, when and where they choose. Offering new revenue opportunity strengthens the relationship between the plan and its network providers.

Consult A Doctor (http://www.consultadoctor.com), a leading provider of consumer-driven telemedicine services announces a program specifically designed for the Health Insurance Industry. Consult A Doctor's innovative telemedicine service will transform the inefficiencies of the healthcare marketplace and reduce costs by as much as 25% if not more, for employer-sponsored plans, individuals and families.

Consult A Doctor provides 24/7 access to a cross-coverage network of licensed physicians via telephone and secure e-mail. Accessible from anywhere, around the clock, physicians provide specific answers and advice regarding non-emergency, preventative, maintenance and routine medical questions and issues. Unnecessary doctor's office and Emergency Room visits can be avoided by utilizing a Consult A Doctor physician who will discuss symptoms, recommend treatment, diagnose many common, minor and/or brief illnesses and even prescribe medication when appropriate. Prescriptions can be called in to members' choice of local pharmacy or sent directly via overnight delivery from a mail-order pharmacy partner. All interactions can be forwarded to the primary care physician to maintain continuity of care.

Healthcare providers are now realizing that in order to lower costs, provide greater access to healthcare, and retain or even increase their market share they must start to look at innovations in the marketplace and begin offering telemedicine services such as those provided by Consult A Doctor. As part of this trend, some major healthcare insurers have recently agreed to start reimbursing doctors for online visits. The latest studies show telephone and secure e-mail consultations generate significant cost savings for plan sponsors and benefit payers while providing greater access to physicians. Consult A Doctor offers the most comprehensive consumer-directed telemedicine service available, with multiple convenient ways to contact a doctor and a thorough Personal Health Manager including an expansive health and medical library, wellness tools and a personal health record.

Further, studies conclude that:

-- Up to 85% of Emergency Room visits are not emergent, and as many as half are not even urgent according to the latest Centers for Disease Control (CDC) survey.

-- According to Wellness Council of America, approximately 70% of all doctor visits are unnecessary, and over a third of all minor medical conditions can be treated by phone or e-mail without a trip to the doctor at all.

-- The total cost of unnecessary physician office visits and unnecessary emergency room visits is estimated at around $31 billion annually.

It has been well documented that healthcare premiums are rising at a rate of approximately 7% annually and many employers are getting creative and exploring different alternatives, such as: HRA's and HSA's. Employers are finding they can have immediate, significant and sustainable reduction to healthcare costs by combining telemedicine programs like Consult A Doctor with existing traditional plans and/or with new high deductible options that leave out primary care to be paid out-of-pocket.

As the most accessible and comprehensive telemedicine service available, Consult A Doctor's solutions have made healthcare more convenient for patients while raising quality and reducing costs. Consult A Doctor is the most accessible because its physicians can be contacted either via telephone, secure e-mail or online at any time including nights, weekends, and holidays. It is the most comprehensive because in conjunction with unfettered access to licensed physicians, Consult A Doctor offers the most informative, interactive, educational Personal Health Manager available, integrating a Personal Health Record and many other health management, risk assessment and decision support tools that empower users to lead healthier lives.

For more information about Consult A Doctor, please visit http://www.consultadoctor.com.

About Consult A Doctor

Consult A Doctor is an innovative consumer-directed telemedicine company providing individuals and families with employer sponsored healthcare benefits that gives them 24/7/365 access to a cross-coverage network of licensed physicians via telephone or secure e-mail. Accessible from work or home, physicians provide specific answers to non-emergency, preventative, maintenance and routine medical conditions and questions, discussing symptoms, recommending treatment, diagnosing many common, minor/brief illnesses and prescribing medication if appropriate. For more information about Consult A Doctor, visit the website at http://www.consultadoctor.com, or call toll free 877-DOC-CONSULT.

(http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20071203/CLM015LOGO )