Verizon Launches Virtual Health Clinic

Patients suffering from simple ailments, such as the common cold or flu, can now seek professional care using an app on their smartphone, tablet or laptop.

GREENVILLE, SC –  Doctors may not make house calls anymore, but Verizon has launched new technology that makes it simple to visit a health care provider for treatment of a simple ailment right from home. Verizon Virtual Visits connects the patient with a medical professional who can diagnose and prescribe medications, like antibiotics, on the spot.

Verizon Virtual Visits is expected to reduce the number of emergency room admissions for simple illnesses by offering a solution during night and holiday hours when primary care providers may be closed. Each year, millions of people visit emergency rooms in the US for non-critical symptoms, increasing ER wait times and driving up health care costs.

“Emergency room admissions for non-emergency care will cost the US healthcare system an estimated $4.4 billion this year,” said Jerry Fountain, regional president for Verizon Wireless. “Verizon Virtual Visits can reduce these unneeded ER visits and help free emergency room resources for critical needs patients. The level of non-emergency care provided by Verizon Virtual Visits is top-notch, and can be accessed from almost anywhere.”

Verizon Virtual Visits connects a patient with a licensed clinician through a secure app on a smartphone or tablet, or via the Internet on a secure portal. Once logged in, patients enter insurance information and pay any applicable co-pays – just like at a traditional doctor’s office – and then they are asked several health-related questions before speaking in video-chat format with the provider. All data shared between the patient and provider is encrypted and stored on Verizon’s HIPAA-enabled cloud, providing the same level of security as a physical doctor’s office. Clinicians can then use an online platform to electronically send a prescription to a nearby pharmacy.