COVID-19 & the Telehealth Tipping Point

With Americans going into and out of and into quarantine again, there has been an explosion in the use of telehealth during the COVID-19 epidemic. Telehealth refers broadly to electronic and telecommunications technologies and services used to provide care and services at-a-distance. The biggest barriers to telehealth—namely, government and payer resistance and HIPAA patient privacy restrictions—came crumbling down amid the COVID-19 pandemic, reports the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota. Telehealth is now at a tipping point that has driven a new way of thinking in the sense of how efficient and powerful these tools can be for health care consumer and provider alike. Today we talk with telehealth pioneer Randy Parker, Founder and CEO of Genius Rx, a full-service, online pharmacy that officially launched this month to make access to medicines, OTC products, and wellness supplements simple, intuitive, and personal but at-a-distance. Randy, who is also the Founder and former CEO of MDLIVE, brings more than 30 years of experience starting and building successful, disruptive, consumer-focused companies using the latest technologies. ◘ Related Content GeniusRx https://welcome.geniusrx.com/app/ Implications for Telehealth in a Postpandemic Future https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jama/fullarticle/2766369 Telehealth: A Balanced Look at Incorporating This Technology Into Practice https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/2377960818786504 Barriers and Facilitators That Influence Telemedicine-Based, Real-Time, Online Consultation at Patients’ Homes: Systematic Literature Review https://www.jmir.org/2020/2/e16407/ Pandemic triggers big swings in prescription drug use https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/pandemic-triggers-big-swings-prescription-drug-71118246 ◘ Transcript https://bit.ly/3jIUoHd ◘ This podcast features the song “Follow Your Dreams” (freemusicarchive.org/music/Scott_Ho…ur_Dreams_1918) by Scott Holmes, available under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial (01https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) license. ◘ Disclaimer: The content and information shared in GW Integrative Medicine is for educational purposes only and should not be taken as medical advice. The views and opinions expressed in GW Integrative Medicine represent the opinions of the host(s) and their guest(s). For medical advice, diagnosis, and/or treatment, please consult a medical professional.