Verizon has launched a new telemedicine service that allows users to receive on-demand care for common, acute conditions.
Called Verizon Virtual Visits, the new service connects users to a provider through either a mobile app or a web portal. The user answers a series of questions, and is then able to videoconference with a clinician who will provide treatment recommendations and send prescriptions electronically to a nearby pharmacy when appropriate and where legal.
Verizon intends to offer the service to healthcare providers and large employers looking to offer telemedicine services. Organizations will be able to brand the apps they offer, and patients using any wireless carrier will be able to access the service, according to a report in VentureBeat.
"When we built this, we initially thought it was going to be health plans who were interested," Julie Kling, director of mobile health at Verizon, told VentureBeat. "But the Affordable Care Act has changed things … now providers and hospital systems are looking for ways to make more revenue."
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