RelayHealth

RelayHealth has pioneered secure, structured HIPAA-ready online doctor-patient communication services. RelayHealth features include a full array of messaging options – supporting appointment requests, medication refill requests, referral requests, lab results, and a clinically structured interchange surrounding a non-urgent medical issue, called a webVisit[SM].

Situation

Individuals and payers face spiraling increases in healthcare costs with few solutions in sight. In fact, total health benefit costs for active employees rose by over 14% from 2001 to 2002, reaching $5,616 per employee.i Individuals are shouldering a greater share of cost as employers shift costs onto employees.

Technological advances are emerging that could help lower some of these healthcare costs. According to the PricewaterhouseCoopers’ Healthcare 2010 Report, 20% of doctors' office visits could be replaced by on-line visits by 2010. An April 2002 Harris Interactive poll, stated that over 90% of U.S. adults with on-line access would like to be able to communicate with their own doctor on-line. Over half say that on-line access to their doctor would influence their choice of doctor or health plan.

Solution

RelayHealth has pioneered secure, structured HIPAA-ready on-line doctor-patient communication services. RelayHealth features include a full array of messaging options—supporting appointment requests, medication refill requests, referral requests, lab results, and a clinically structured interchange surrounding a non-urgent medical issue, called a WebVisitSM. A growing list of health plans have begun reimbursing physicians for webVisits conducted with their members, based on the outcomes of a large-scale, independent controlled study sponsored by Blue Shield of California and others.

Independent researchers confirmed that RelayHealth's secure e-communication service significantly reduces healthcare costs while generating high levels of doctor and patient satisfaction.

Better Health & Lower Costs

A research team led by Laurence Baker, Ph.D., Chief of Health Services Research at the Stanford University School of Medicine, analyzed claims data for treatment patients with access to RelayHealth and found statistically significant reductions in spending, compared to a matched control group without access to the service. Reduction in office-based spending was $1.92 per member per month; with total spending reduced by over $3.00 per member per month. These reductions compared favorably to claims paid out for webVisits, which totaled $0.31 per member per month.

Patients reported improved access to their physicians, and most physicians surveyed preferred webVisits to office visits for patients with non-urgent medical needs. The majority of patients found the service convenient (78%), easy to use (71%), and of good to excellent quality, when compared to an office visit (66%). Over half reported improved access to their doctor.

Most physicians found the service easy to use (72%), satisfying (63%), and over half (56%) preferred webVisits to office visits for patients with nonurgent medical needs.

On the strength of these results, Blue Shield of California and ConnectiCare have each announced plans to expand their programs through which physicians are reimbursed for webVisits with their members. Other payers are now contracting to reimburse for webVisits, with announcements forthcoming. Over a dozen major health systems and medical groups around the country have now contracted to implement RelayHealth in their medical practices.

The results of the study demonstrate the benefits of offering non-urgent on-line care, one of the few instances in healthcare where payers, medical groups, physicians, and patients alike all benefit. With healthcare costs spiraling upward, webVisits are practical, cost efficient, and satisfying for all participants and can make a meaningful impact on a health plan's bottom line.

In addition, HIPAA privacy regulations will make standard e-mail a decidedly unattractive option for doctor/patient communication. Medical groups will demand the clinical quality and structure the RelayHealth service provides to limit liability and ensure reimbursement.

On-line doctor/patient e-communication has the potential to save tens of millions of dollars annually in healthcare costs for a typical health plan while satisfying members and improving access to care. These savings can translate into reduced costs for employers and individuals, and reduction in rates of uninsured and underinsured—which rise as out of pocket costs rise.

It also provides an alternate way for physicians to treat their existing patients with non-urgent needs, freeing schedule time for sicker patients, and improving service levels for all patients.