An interesting window into how technology can cut health care costs arrived yesterday in the form of a postcard from a company called Teladoc, which, in New York, is offering a deal by which an individual can pay $30 a year ($50 for a family) and get the ability to access a Beth Israel hospital doctor via phone or online video for $38 a consult. The Web site claims that the access to the doctors is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and that the doctors will respond within an hour to a request for a consultation. The firm also offers its services (which do not all involve Beth Israel doctors) to organizations and claims it serves more than 4.5 million members.
A telephone or video consultation isn't always a perfect substitute for an in-person exam, but so long as one keeps that in mind, there's probably some room for this sort of thing in the market for health care.
