With the way the industry is quickly gravitating towardtechnology, it's a good time for brokers to consider addingtelehealth coverage options for theirclients.

So much of life—work, family, entertainment—now takes placeonline, so it's no surprise health care delivery is increasinglyhappening online as well. In early 2016, the American TelemedicineAssociation reported there were 1 million virtual doctor visits in2015. The Association projected the number would grow by 20 percentin 2016.

However robust the growth rate, virtual visits represent a verysmall proportion of the 922.6 million recorded doctor visits in2013 by the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey. Still, thereare several reasons to believe telemedicine is on an upwardtrajectory.

In March 2016, Avizia, a telehealth platform provider, surveyed280 health care providers and found 72 percent of hospitals and 25percent of physician groups offer some form of telemedicine. Andtellingly, the National Business Group on Health's 2016 survey of140 companies found the majority of large employers (those with aworkforce of 5,000 or more) offer some type of telemedicinebenefit.

NBGH forecasts by 2020, virtually all large employers willprovide some type of virtual health coverage for their employees. Abroader survey conducted by Mercer in 2015, which sampled 2,500companies with 10 or more employees, found 60 percent provide sometype of telemedicine coverage, double the percentage that had doneso the year before.

Poised for growth

There are plenty of good reasons why telehealth is poised to grow. For one thing, itprovides crucial health care services to those in communitiesserved by few practitioners in general, not to mention fewerspecialists. Cost reduction is another reason underlying thetelemedicine trend, especially in areas like chronic diseasemanagement and the effects of aging. For both preventive care andacute incidents, telemedicine has been shown to reduce the numberof expensive ER visits and inpatient hospital stays.

Technology is a prime enabler of telehealth growth. Most of ushave probably seen older movies in which a doctor stands behind aham radio operator and coaches someone in a remote, blizzard-boundvillage on how to perform an appendectomy.

The technology has certainly improved since then. Videoconferencing applications have become so sophisticated the virtualhas actually become close to the physical. Monitoringequipment—increasingly embedded in a patient—can report back onvitals in real time. Health tech and insurtech companies areproliferating, offering a wide range of health- andwellness-related applications. And most Americans are equipped toaccess telehealth services.

Earlier this year, Pew Research reported 77 percent of Americanshave smartphones, over half have tablets, and 73 percent of allhomes have broadband. Across the board, people are becomingcomfortable using applications like FaceTime and Skype tocommunicate.

Patient demand will also drive the adoption of telemedicine. Forolder patients, telemedicine allows them to stay at home to receivecare, eliminating the stress of getting to and from appointments.For remote workers, especially those who work far away from healthservices, telemedicine makes a lot of sense. For millennials andother digital natives used to communicating virtually, the desirefor telemedicine will come naturally.

Given the pace and stress of life today, it's not just theelderly, the telecommuter, and the millennials who'll want to takeadvantage of telemedicine. Because it's so convenient, people willincreasingly gravitate toward it. Studies have shown the care formany ailments is equivalent in terms of quality to that provided inperson, and patients are satisfied with the level of care.

A 2016 survey reported by the National Institutes of Health(based on responses from over 3,000 patients treated via telehealthat a CVS MinuteClinic) showed between 94 percent and 99 percentwere “very satisfied” with telehealth. One-third of respondentsactually preferred the telehealth experience.

Insurers coming around

Many insurers have been somewhat reluctant to offer telehealthcoverage. Despite the fact some forms of telemedicine have beenpracticed for decades, it's still not used widely. Insurers mayfear costs under telehealth could escalate.

In addition, the definition of what constitutes telehealth isnot yet fully formed. What if physicians began billing for everyquick text message exchanged or email answered? And what if thesetext messages and emails are additive, or not connected with an inperson visit?

Under the Affordable Care Act, the federal government did takesome small steps towards telehealth. Admittedly, the ACA effortswere only with respect to Medicare, and only in a limited set ofsituations (i.e., the patients m

ust be in rural locations, can't be seen in their own homes, andtheir visits must be conducted via an approved telehealth site). Atthe state level, telehealth coverage provisions differ from stateto state, many having implemented regulations governing telehealthcoverage with respect to Medicaid and private insurance. Whatservices are reimbursed for, and how parity between virtual andin-person services is defined, vary widely.

Despite the complexity surrounding telehealth, and all theunknowns, most major insurance carriers offer plans which cover theprovision of general medical care via telemedicine, and manyprovide telehealth-based mental health services, as well.

The broker's role

Given the many benefits which come with telehealth, brokersshould strongly consider including it in their offerings. Not onlyis it beneficial for employers and individual clients, it positionsbrokers who do offer this type of service in their benefitspackages as innovative. But how can brokers approach the telehealthissue with their clients and the individuals they're workingwith?

First, it's important to stay ahead of the curve by anticipatingclient needs. This means offering telehealth solutions beforeclient demand rises; however, brokers should do more than simplyinsert these options into their benefits packages just to havethem. To provide clients with the best ROI, it's important tocompare vendors, starting with the type of services they offer andthe communication channels they use to consistently engage withindividuals (mobile apps/mHealth, email, live video, remote patientmonitoring, etc.), followed by which providers they use and who iscovered.

While it's important for brokers to consider their own needs,particularly when it comes to cost, it's worth keeping in mind thatsolutions with higher quality services may add value for clients inthe long-run.

Of course, telehealth isn't a replacement for in-person medicalvisits. Still, for many routine visits for things like chronicconditions and mental health services, telehealth can work quiteeffectively. It's promising in terms of its potential for costsavings, and, as people become more and more used to virtualliving, convenience and time savings benefits will win out.