An app connecting patients to Louisiana medical providers is now available for on the Apple App and Google Play stores, according to an announcement from Louisiana Technology Park, where the app was being developed over the past year.
Relief Telemed is a telemedicine platform where medical providers diagnose and, if necessary, prescribe medications for app users.
The app, launched last Wednesday during Baton Rouge Entrepreneurship Week, runs 24 hours a day and is designed to function the same as a traditional urgent care clinic, says Relief Telemed CEO Vishal Visanji, former co-CEO and chief operating officer of Point of Care Health Group, the parent company of Patient Plus Urgent Care.
“In today’s on-demand world, people don’t have time to drive 30 minutes to the doctor’s office, wait another half-hour and consult with the doctor another 30 minutes,” Visanji says. “It’s tough for people to carve out that kind of time unless they’re really sick.”
Through the app, the patient can participate in a live, video visit with one of the eight licensed healthcare providers in the company’s network after answering a few questions and providing a form of payment. Each “visit” is priced at $39.95.
Employer pricing plans are also available for companies that either don’t offer their employees health insurance or offer high-deductible options. Though pricing is negotiable, standard plans cost employers $4.99 per employee per month, Visanji says, with the employee paying $24 per visit.
In the next year, Visanji says he hopes to grow his network of providers from eight to 40. While the app is currently available only to Louisiana users, he’s already eyeing other states as other potential marketplaces.
“Telemed has been around for awhile, but now it’s being adopted more rapidly,” he says. “People want to operate their daily lives through mobile phones.”
