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Jane Rust woke up early one day last year and discovered that her left eye was red, swollen and itchy. So she logged on to her family doctor’s Web site and typed a message describing her symptoms and asking what to do.
By mid-morning, the 61-year-old homemaker received an online response from her doctor with a diagnosis—conjunctivitis, or pink eye insurance news, probably contracted from a child in her Sunday-school class—and a prescription to pick up at the pharmacy. “I didn’t have to disrupt my day,” says Ms. Rust, who lives in Readyville, Tenn. “It’s much more efficient.”
This year, 39% of doctors said they’d communicated with patients online, up from just 16% five years earlier, according to health-information firm Manhattan Research, a unit of Decision Resources Inc. So far, the most common digital doctor services are the simplest ones, like paying bills, sending lab results and scheduling appointments. But patients like Ms. Rust are also using computers to deal with issues that usually require a trip to the doctor’s office. Though the number of physicians doing formal digital visits is still small, the practice of online care has grown as more health insurers begin paying doctors for treating patients virtually, albeit at a lower fee scale than for traditional in-office appointments. Among companies that now cover digital visits are Aetna Inc. and Cigna Corp., as well as Blue Cross Blue Shield plans in states including Florida, Hawaii and North Carolina. WellPoint Inc. and Humana Inc. are trying it in parts of the country, and may expand their coverage. Read rest of story from WSJ |
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