Several years ago, my health insurance consultants proposed the idea of Star Furniture Co. using a program called telemedicine.
I was unfamiliar with the concept but was told that it would provide a benefit to our associates at Star and aid in reducing our overall health care costs.
While I embraced both those principles, my initial reaction was, “Thanks for the idea, but I think I will pass for now.”
Frankly, I worried about the quality of care, the potential liability to Star of a missed diagnosis, and the reaction by our employees. I now know that my fears were completely unfounded, and I am a big proponent of telemedicine. I believe that any company that is not using telemedicine is doing a disservice to their employees and leaving money on the table.
The Texas Association of Business recently surveyed 600 registered Texas voters and found 70 percent of them favor the use of telemedicine to diagnose common medical conditions.
The association also surveyed 159 member companies, the majority of them small businesses; 77 percent favor the use of telemedicine to diagnose common medical conditions. The support among our employees for telemedicine is far higher.
Telemedicine is a cost-effective way to improve health care outcomes for Texans. The convenience and lower cost of treatment through telemedicine can diminish existing barriers, improve Texans’ access to health care and lead to better health outcomes for people across this state.
Cost is the largest barrier to the health care services that people need; the other is access to doctors. Texas faces a severe shortage of doctors both specialists and primary care physicians. We rank near the bottom of states when it comes to the number of doctors per capita. Telemedicine is a way to make more efficient use of existing resources, empowering patients and Texas-licensed physicians to use modern technology to diagnose and treat common, nonemergency medical conditions.
What we have found is that not only are our employees saving money, but they are receiving a high quality of care. Eighty percent of our employees rank the service they get as excellent, and the other 20 percent rate it good.
The health care cost savings also are significant for my company. That is important, because since we are in the retail business, those cost savings eventually end up in the hands of our customers and make our business more competitive in the market.
A recent report issued by the Texas Association of Business found that the cost savings associated with the use of telemedicine are staggering. A recent study of the impact of the introduction of telemedicine consultations to employee benefits packages for a major national retailer found that in addition to saving an average of $1,157 per encounter for those who used the service, these services saved $21.30 per month for each enrolled employee.
On average, a telemedicine consultation represents a savings of 95 percent over a trip to the emergency room and 72 percent over a trip to an urgent care center for similar health issues.
While all this sounds promising, something is holding back the expansion of telemedicine in Texas: a set of antiquated regulations.
There are three things the state should do immediately to facilitate the expansion of telemedicine.
Ensure that the standards of practice for telemedicine and in-person care are consistent with the end goal of increasing access to quality health care and lower consumer costs.
Adopt a technology-neutral definition of telemedicine, meaning patients and doctors could choose the type of technology used to communicate during a telemedicine visit rather than the state dictating a one-size-fits-all approach.
Only require a patient to be examined in-person or travel to a facility when medically necessary as determined by a physician.
We need to ensure that our state regulations aren’t standing in the way. It is critical that Texas join other states in making it easier for businesses to make this choice and easier for more people to have access to this kind of care.
Gary Gibson is the chief financial officer of Star Furniture Co. and the incoming board chairman of the Texas Association of Business.
Date: November 05, 2016