Let’s look at telemedicine for schools as a solution for the increasing burden on budgets due to rising healthcare costs….
Our schools are facing a constant struggle to stretch their already thin budgets farther each year. The economic recession of 2007 caused the federal government to cut or cutback on funding for many programs and services. One casualty was the federal funding to states for education.
Since 2007 the economy has begun to rebound but the funding to states for education has not been fully restored to pre-recession levels. Many school districts are struggling to find ways to cut costs and work within their tight budgets and rising Healthcare costs have further contributed to the strain.
The Solution: Telemedicine for Schools
This is where telemedicine comes into the picture. Most school districts are moving to self-funded plans as a less expensive alternative for their health plans. This can sometimes leave plan members with higher out of pocket costs, and does not address the issue off access to treatment. Telemedicine can specifically address both of these issues, while also saving the health plan a considerable amount of money through claims redirection.
Higher deductibles and co-pays leave our teachers with a larger financial burden. A trip to a primary care physician can cost on average $100.00 per visit. On top of the out of pocket expense is time away from work. A typical visit to the doctor results in 4 hours away from work. This means lost money, productivity and additional travel expenses for our teachers.
If a plan member, or one of their dependents, gets sick on a night, weekend, or holiday it usually results in a trip to the emergency room or urgent care. These are more costly than a visit to doctor’s office. On average, a trip to the emergency room can cost over $1,000 and the urgent care over $150. These costs add up for the teachers in co-pays and deductibles, and the school district in claims against the health plan.
Telemedicine for Schools: 24/7 Access to Doctors for $0 Copays
AllyHealth telemedicine for schools solves both of these issues with 24/7/365 access to US Board Certified physicians and $0 cost per consult to the member. When a member, or one of their dependents, is feeling sick treatment is just a phone call or mouse click away. Members can simply log onto the website, call the toll free phone number, or open the app on their smart phone or tablet and speak with a doctor right away. It’s that easy! There is no cost to the member for the consult and no claim to the health plan for the school district.
No waiting either! Members choose which doctor they want to speak with in the network. The average time for members to receive a call back in 9 minutes! When was the last time you had to wait less than 20 to 30 minutes to see the doctor? Members can also schedule a doctor to call them back at a specific time when they know they will be available.
Now is when schools are making decisions about the healthcare plans they will be offering next year. Our future depends on a healthy and educated society. Saving schools money means more funds that can be put into resources to enhance education. Access to healthcare professionals anytime and anywhere gives teachers and administrators the ability to manage their own healthcare, which leads to better outcomes and healthier populations.
Call us today to discuss your school district clients and we can help put together a customized proposal and ROI analysis to show how much money they could be saving next year with AllyHealth telemedicine.
In Good Health,
Ron Douglass
CEO, AllyHealth
