Forward-looking docs go online with benes--and want insurers to pay for it: it's early for plans to jump on the bandwagon, but they may need to move fast later.(Reimbursement)

Publication: Medicine & Health

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COPYRIGHT 2006 Eli Research, Inc.

Anyone who says that Internet consultations are the next big thing may be bankrolling the next big thing. But in an age where many of us spend more time online than offline, it pays for health plans to keep a close eye on the big players who are trying it.

Online consultations are growing but haven't taken off yet. "Only one-fourth of U.S. physician practices are doing any email with patients," reports Erika Fishman, MPH, senior analyst at Manhattan Research. And most who do use plain old unsecured email, she adds, not the robust, structured and secure communication systems that companies such as RelayHealth and Medem have developed to serve health...

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