House-call service Heal adds new insurer partnership
The deal will provide the company's house-call service to members of a health plan operating as a joint venture between Sutter Health and Aetna.
The deal will provide the company's house-call service to members of a health plan operating as a joint venture between Sutter Health and Aetna.
In an interview, Landmark Health Chief Medical Officer and co-founder Dr. Michael Le said house calls provide a way for healthcare providers to get a better understanding of their patients needs and challenges beyond a doctor's office. Landmark will take part in the HLTH conference next week.
As technology advances, AI-powered tools will increasingly reduce the administrative burdens on healthcare providers.
The startup is focused on providing in-home care for mainly senior patients with high-acuity medical issues as a way to divert from costly emergency room visits and unnecessary hospitalizations.
Heal eventually want to cover everything from pre-birth services like lactation consulting, to vaccinations and immunizations and on through mental and sexual health as the child gets older.
The move advances two growing trends: Minnesota’s “big health” players investing in startups and nontraditional providers offering the perhaps the most traditional of healthcare services that has been abandoned by mainstream providers: the house call.
After three practices dropped out, there are now 14 around the country participating in the project — including five sites run by the Visiting Physicians Association.
The Colorado health system is teaming with DispatchHealth to bring both acute and primary care services to patients' homes and workplaces.