- More accessible, Convenient Healthcare for You and Your Family. Too busy to take the time to see a doctor? Does the urgent care center have inconvenient hours? According to one survey, one in two adult Americans (51 percent) have trouble finding suitable healthcare options on nights and weekends, leaving the local emergency room as the only option if care is needed in these particular times.
This Plan’s Teladoc benefit removes this obstacle because Teladoc is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Which means that anyone can fit a doctor’s appointment into their or their loved one’s schedule, even if there is limited time available. - No In-Office Wait Time. Depending on the state you live in, it has been estimated that the average wait time in a doctor’s office ranges from 13 minutes and 22 seconds to 25 minutes and 57 seconds. If staring at an aquarium or reading old magazines is your thing, then more power to you. However, for most people not having to physically sit and wait in a doctor’s office for things that could be handled over the internet or via the phone from home or work, means more time in their day to spend with their family, take care of all of their other obligations or just to rest.
- Decreased Risk of Germs. Speaking of physician and urgent care waiting rooms, have you ever been in a doctor’s office or urgent care center and ended up sitting next to someone who is sneezing and coughing? Were you concerned? How about annoyed? You may have every right to be. Inside Edition’s investigative team found that after visiting 10 doctor’s offices, one-half of them tested positive for staphylococcus aureus, a bacterium responsible for skin infections and pneumonia. That’s not to say that all healthcare facilities are littered with germs, but if your immune system is already compromised why would you want to risk getting sicker? As such, the Teladoc benefit is an excellent option that can help you lower your risk of picking up the latest germs that can exist in these waiting rooms.
- Better Access to Healthcare While Traveling. Are you working out of town? On vacation? Do you have a child attending college out of the area? Regardless of where you or your loved ones are geographically, the Plan’s Teladoc benefit can provide you with access to care whenever care is needed – 24/7. But if you don’t download the app you could be setting yourself up for failure.
- Less Expensive for You. There is no cost to you or any of your eligible dependents for using this benefit. Yes, you read that correctly. There is no charge to you. Its free! Secondly, the American Telemedicine Association reports that Telemedicine, such as this Plan’s Teladoc benefit provides cost savings for patients “through better management of chronic diseases, reduced travel times, and fewer or shorter hospital stays.” This all reduces the amount of money you or a loved one has to spend on medical care.
- Mobility or Transportation Issues? Some individuals simply lack reliable transportation, others are disabled making it difficult for them to tend to their healthcare needs. This Plan’s Teladoc benefit solves both of these issues by making it easier for people to receive the care they need without having to physically go to a doctor’s office.
- Unavailability and Overburdened Medical Professionals. More and more physicians are stretched thin. There are two primary reasons for this. The first is that many physicians are saddled with the requirement to maximize revenues. This is generally accomplished by increasing their fees and by seeing more patients or working more hours. Rather than work more hours, physicians often reduce the amount of time they spend with each patient. Don’t believe us? Let me ask you a question. The last time you visited with a physician, did you spend more time in the waiting room or more time face to face with the physician?
The second reason is that physicians spend an enormous amount of time handling medical issues that are not emergent, nor serious enough that they could not be handled via a video consultation or over via the phone.
Because Mom Said So. You don’t have to do it……., you get to do it! That is what my mom always told me. A lot of other trades do not offer a Telemedicine benefit, yours does. Lucky you. You get to download this app. Take advantage of it. Download it now. After that, you can go outside and play.
For those who have not signed up for the Teladoc benefit you need to do so first before downloading the Teladoc App. Just go to http://www.teladoc.com and click the “Set Up Account” button under the Member tab. After your sign-up is complete, you can then download the Teladoc App. For those that have already signed up, but did not download the Teladoc App, do so. Just go to the App Store or Google Play and search for Teladoc. (The App shows a purple circle with a blue line underneath.)