When you make a purchase online, do you choose next next-day shipping? When you have a free weekend, do you binge-watch an entire season – or two or five – of your favorite show?
We live in a world where instant-access – to our favorite foods, favorite shows, or that cute pair of boots – is the new normal. If we can get all of that with one click, why should immediate access to medical care be any different? Thanks to telemedicine it isn’t.
While telemedicine isn’t a new concept, it’s growing as more employers add it to their health benefits packages to help cut costs and improve access to care. In fact, 80% of employers will offer a telehealth benefit to their employees by 2018, according to a Towers Watson survey.
When you don’t have time to sit in a waiting room, telemedicine gives you 24/7 virtual access to board-certified physicians who can diagnose non-medical issues.
Here are a few benefits of the program:
- It can save you time – Chatting with a licensed physician on your phone, tablet or computer reduces the time you must take off work or rearranging your schedule to make an in-person doctor appointment. 21%
- It can save companies money – Telemedicine could potentially save U.S. companies more than $6 billion a year in health care costs, according to Towers Watson.
- Virtual care is acceptable care – You may be wondering if it’s weird to see a doctor without seeing one in person. Turns out, 76% of patients believe having access to care is more important than having a face-to-face visit with a physician.
