Virtual Healthcare March 2023

How is virtual healthcare used to benefit patients and care givers? What are the newest innovations in virtual care technology? How do telehealth and telemedicine fit into the realm of virtual healthcare? We have our finger on the pulse and are striving to report the latest developments around virtual healthcare.

Industry News

Transcarent to Acquire 98point6 AI-Powered Virtual Care Platform and Care Business
Transcarent (@transcarent), a health and care experience company that makes it easy for people to access high-quality, affordable care announced plans to acquire the AI-powered virtual care platform and care business of on-demand primary care company, 98point6.

Veta Health and Interactive Digital Solutions (IDS) Announce Strategic Partnership
Veta Health (@veta_health) and Indiana-based Interactive Digital Solutions (@idsolutionsinc) announced their strategic partnership to expand IDS’s virtual care offerings through an exclusive reseller agreement. The adoption of telehealth and virtual care has surged since the Covid-19 pandemic and the demand for solutions that extend beyond virtual visits is high. The partnership enables hospitals and health systems to contract with a single organization to provide a comprehensive virtual care solution in ambulatory and acute care settings.

CaptureProof, the Leading HIPAA-Compliant Platform for Asynchronous Patient Image Sharing, Celebrates Eleven Years of Innovation 

Sree Chaguturu, MD, Chief Medical Officer, CVS Health, Named Chair-Elect of American Telemedicine Association Board of Directors
The American Telemedicine Association (@AmericanTelemed) announced that Sree Chaguturu, MD, has been named Chair-elect of the Board of Directors. Dr. Chaguturu is Executive Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, CVS Health®, where he leads the enterprise medical affairs organization spanning Aetna®, CVS Caremark®, CVS Pharmacy®, MinuteClinic® and Health Care Delivery. He has served on the ATA Board of Directors since December 2020.

Chugai and Biofourmis Enter into New Partnership Focused on Data-Driven Virtual Care for Endometriosis-Related Pain
Chugai Pharmaceutical Co. and Biofourmis (@biofourmis), a global company in technology-enabled care delivery, announced that they have entered into a new partnership agreement for the continued development and real-world use of digital solutions to objectively measure pain in patients with endometriosis.

CareView Communications Partners With SONIFI Health to Streamline Inpatient Virtual Care
CareView Communications, Inc. (@CareViewSystem), an information technology provider to the healthcare industry has developed an integration with SONIFI Health that allows care teams to communicate with patients using the interactive TV platform already present in the patient rooms. This integration between CareView and SONIFI Health, which provides interactive technology solutions to improve patient engagement, is essential to creating a patient-centric, interconnected virtual care system.

WeightWatchers to buy Sequence telehealth, enter obesity drug prescription business
WW International Inc (WW.O), known as WeightWatchers, is acquiring subscription telehealth platform Sequence, moving the weight-loss program operator into the obesity drug prescription business.

Remote Patient Monitoring

Southcoast Health Reduces In-Home Care Costs and Hospital Readmissions with Virtual Visits and Remote Patient Monitoring
The Southcoast Health Visiting Nurse Association (@SouthcoastHlth) saved an average of four in-home nursing visits annually, and generated over $500,000 in cost savings, while achieving a 7% 30-day readmission rate for 2,621 high-risk patients over the last 16 months leveraging remote patient monitoring (RPM) and a virtual visit program.

Product News

CVS Health launches new virtual primary care offering, expands access to mental health support
CVS Health® (@CVSHealth) Virtual Primary Care is a new virtual care offering that provides primary care, 24/7 on-demand care1 and scheduled mental health services. If in-person follow-up care is needed, a patient can seek care at any in-network provider, including MinuteClinic®.

HandsFree Health Adds WellBe Chat AI Conversational Feature to its Product Offering
HandsFree Health (@HandsFreeHealth), provider of WellBe®, a secure, HIPAA-compliant, voice-enabled virtual health assistant platform, announced “WellBe Chat” – a significantly enhanced conversational feature that uses AI to communicate in a clear, friendly and interactive manner.

Policy News

Post-PHE Federal Telehealth Policy Landscape Becomes More Clear

Advocates, lawmakers warn that Biden telehealth rule will worsen opioid crisis

To Read

Proven Strategies for Healthcare Project Management by Kaiser Health News – When the covid-19 pandemic swept the country in early 2020 and emptied doctors’ offices nationwide, telemedicine was suddenly thrust into the spotlight. Patients and their physicians turned to virtual visits by video or phone rather than risk meeting face-to-face.

Beyond the call: How to differentiate your telehealth experience post-visit by Wolters Kluwer – To truly differentiate the telehealth experience, the patient experience surrounding the call is just as important as the online consultation itself.

Case studies: Digitally enabled care in action by AMA – These case studies highlight health systems and practices using care models that leverage digital tools and demonstrate the value of virtual care.

5 Imperatives to Scale a Virtual Nursing Program by American Hospital Association – Virtual nursing was introduced a couple of decades ago, but it’s getting a fresh look thanks in large part to its successful use during the height of the pandemic. Today, leaders at many health systems are piloting technologies and expanding programs as they work to systematically scale this model.

To Listen

Our HealthcareNOW Radio Telehealth Playlist
The Health Resources and Services Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services defines telehealth as “the use of electronic information and telecommunications technologies to support and promote long-distance clinical health care, patient and professional health-related education, public health and health administration.” To learn more and find out about the latest in telehealth tune in to the episodes on this playlist. Additionally, be sure to read HCNR’s Friday Five which recaps the site’s month long concentration on telehealth.

Defining the Industry According to the AAFP

Telemedicine is the practice of medicine using technology to deliver care at a distance. It occurs using a telecommunications infrastructure between a patient (at an originating or spoke site) and a physician or other practitioner licensed to practice medicine (at a distant or hub site).

Virtual Care is a patient service model for healthcare providers.

Telehealth refers to a broad collection of electronic and telecommunications technologies that support health care delivery and services from distant locations. Telehealth technologies support virtual medical, health, and education services.

Hashtags to follow for updates on Telemedicine:

Telehealth.HHS.gov
During the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, we don’t have to choose between medical care and social distancing. When patients can get health care through telehealth — and doctors can provide it — we protect ourselves and our communities. The Telehealth.HHS.gov website provides information about the latest federal efforts to support and promote telehealth services.

The American Telemedicine Association Events
ATA is a non-profit association based in Washington DC with a membership network of more than 10,000 industry leaders and healthcare professionals. We are a leading telehealth association helping to transform healthcare by improving the quality, equity and affordability of healthcare throughout the world. Find their next event.