After Hurricane Harvey hit the Gulf Coast in August, the healthcare community rallied together to lend a hand to victims. Among those who helped? Telehealth providers. Companies such as Doctor on Demand, Teladoc, HealthTap and others offered free telehealth visits to people affected by the storm.
Now Hurricane Irma is advancing on Florida and is expected to make landfall on September 9, according to The New York Times.
Though Floridians have started to evacuate, healthcare stakeholders are once again leveraging technology to assist those in the hurricane’s path.
Many of the same faces that stepped in to help Harvey victims are reappearing to aid those impacted by Irma.
Teladoc and Doctor on Demand are providing telehealth visits to victims at no cost. American Well has opened a telehealth medical and psychological counseling practice on Amwell, its consumer service, dedicated to offering free visits to those in need of assistance. MDLive, which is headquarted in Florida, is giving free services to victims. Additionally, it has teamed up with AvMed, a nonprofit health plan, to provide AvMed Virtual Visits powered by MDLive to members.
Speaking of health plans, an insurer is also utilizing telemedicine to take part in relief efforts. Indianapolis-based Anthem‘s telehealth service affiliate, LiveHealth Online, is offering no-cost medical and psychological visits to those impacted by Irma, even if they aren’t a member of one of Anthem’s affiliated health plans.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Hospitals, too, are turning to telehealth as the storm approaches, according to the Orlando Sentinel.
Through its Florida HospitaleCare app, Florida Hospital is providing individuals with access to eCare Urgent Care providers. The service is free through September 12.
Nemours Children’s Hospital is doing something similar. Patients can connect with physicians for free via the Nemours CareConnect app or NemoursCareConnect.com.
And Orlando Health, another prominent Florida provider, is giving victims free telehealth services through Teladoc, its vendor.
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