Dr. John Kosmeh, Director of Telemedicine, Education and Training
Telemedicine is the use of telecommunication and information technologies in order to provide clinical health care at a distance. It is becoming an essential part of day-to-day life in this Covid time we live in, but telemedicine can also save you time and money.
Research suggests that people who use telemedicine spend less time in the hospital, providing cost savings. Also, less commuting time may mean fewer secondary expenses, such as childcare and gas. Telehealth is exploding, growing from 11% usage in 2019 to 46% in 2020, shows more and more families are turning to the telehealth than ever before…. but why?
Obviously, the pandemic has a lot to do with it, but after discovering the savings and convenience of a telemedicine visit, people are beginning to wonder why they haven’t been doing this all along.
The savings of not having a high co-pay and deductible is being to add money into family’s pockets all across America. College students are discovering RemoteMD’s unlimited monthly plan designed for those students away from home, can be a piece of mind and affordable way to not worry about medical expenses and provide 24/7 medical care. One parent in NC said “$70 a month to know my child is protected all day every day is the best investment I have made in a long time”
“The ease of being able to be seen at home in a moment’s notice without having to bundle the kids up is a life saver” from one mom is Massachusetts.
So how much money can telemedicine save you? Well, it really depends, if you are on a high co-pay high deductible plan, the savings could be very significant. A John Hopkins study showed the average cost for an emergency room visit will vary based on whether or not you have insurance. A typical co-pay for emergency room services for an insured person is around $250, which may or may not be waived if you are admitted to the hospital. However, with the advent of high-deductible health plans in recent years, even insured persons may have to foot the entire bill if they have not met the plan’s annual deductible. These deductibles must meet the IRS 2020 minimums of $1,400 for an individual, or $2,800 for a family to be considered an HDHP.
The deductible could be even higher depending on your plan and If you do not have health insurance, an ER visit can cost several thousand dollars depending on the level of care required and go up from there if you are out of network.
The truth is, many ER visits are unnecessary. A report by Premier, found that six common chronic conditions accounted for 60% of 24 million ED visits in 2017; out of that 60%, about a third of those visits—or 4.3 million—were likely preventable and could be treated in a less expensive outpatient setting.
RemoteMD has focused on providing telemedicine solutions to reduce the cost of healthcare for all Americans and to make it more convenient for everyone to get the healthcare they need. With monthly unlimited plans for as low as 99 dollars a month and unlimited veterans plans at $59.99 a month, affordable healthcare is now a reality for everyone. Stop paying high healthcare cost and keep that money in your pocket. Log on today for more information and get your piece of mind knowing everyone in your family is covered.
