Doctors On Call 24/7/365
Kenneth T. Uemura
President of K Uemura LLC and broker for CADRPlus
How did you become involved with CADRPlus (Consult A Doctor Plus)?
The establishment of my consulting business coincided with the start-up of CADRPlus, which was co-founded by a good friend and a senior insurance executive. He felt that with my extensive business and financial background I would appreciate the value of telemedicine and could communicate what CADRPlus can offer employers and employees.
What is CADRPlus?
I will start by saying that CADRPlus is not health insurance and it does not replace your primary care physician. CADRPlus is a telemedicine program that complements your health insurance and primary care physician by providing low-cost resources to improve wellness and lifestyle for a person and his or her family. With CADRPlus you will be connected to the help you need if anyone, anytime, anywhere needs a doctor, a consultant or a coach to help with work-life balance, an attorney, legal adviser or someone to help reduce your hospital bills. You simply call … or click.
What services does it offer?
CADRPlus combines three best-in-class health services into one easy-to-use program. The backbone of the CADRPlus program is Consult A Doctor, which is a technology that connects you with a physician on-demand, with 24/7 access by phone, email or video. You get diagnosis and prescriptions for common non-emergency conditions. The other important health service is Aetna Resources for Living, which gives instant access to professional consultants and coaches to help achieve work-life balance, and legal and financial guidance from qualified professional advocates. The third service is Access to the WellCard, a free prescription and healthcare discount card that gives access to savings on a wide range of healthcare products and services, including prescription drugs, lab tests, vision care and dental care.
Who would CADRPlus best benefit?
Reflect on what CADRPlus offers and you can see how it would benefit individuals, families and employers. For example, members get convenience and peace of mind of having access to licensed physicians and industry professionals whenever and wherever they may be, with no limitations on usage. Because CADRPlus is significantly less expensive than typical office, and emergency room or urgent care visits, there is money savings. Employers’ money is saved when employees avoid expensive visits to doctors, urgent care and ER, lowering the total cost of healthcare. In addition, it saves employers’ time because employees take less time off work, and early intervention and recovery leads to increased wellness and productivity. Lastly, employers get happier, healthier employees, which leads to a better workplace.
What is the need for a program like this?
One only needs to look at the state of traditional healthcare today to see how CADRPlus could help. Our system is strained, and with the passing of the Affordable Healthcare Act it may be nearing the breaking point. There are a lot of national statistics, but let me note some “bone sticking” ones. Doctors’ offices are closed more than 75 percent of the hours in a week. The average time to make an appointment is more than three weeks, and the average person waits 23 minutes in the waiting room. Twenty to 40 million more Americans will compete for care by 2014, and the average ER bill is more than $1,000. The good news is that our healthcare system is about to experience a paradigm shift to TeleHealth. Like the cell phone in the early ’80s, the Internet in the late ’90s and online banking in the past three years affected how people changed their patterns of doing things, in the next five years, telemedicine will be how most people will engage in non-emergency medical care. Statistics indicate that 80 percent of office visits could be better handled over the phone and the top three reasons for ER visits are easily treated via phone.
Are there actual doctors on the other end of the phone?
Yes, there is a network of licensed primary care physicians and specialists who are U.S. Board Certified and state-licensed doctors receiving the calls. On average, they have 10 years of office experience.
How is this different from calling your own doctor’s office?
It is very different since the normal call to the doctor’s office is for an appointment and not for consultation or diagnosis for non-emergency care. In addition, the service is 24/7/365 so you are able to talk to a doctor after normal doctors’ hours, during the weekend and while traveling in the 50 states. A doctor will be available to take your call within less than two minutes. A diagnostic consultation can be given in as little as 30 minutes. You can schedule a convenient time to talk to a doctor, or you can email a doctor or do a video consultation.
The cost for an individual and his or her family of up to five additional members is 66 cents a day, and for a group plan it’s 33 cents a day. For group plans or if you have questions, contact me through the website: getcadrplus.com/ken-uemura.
CADRPlus is a terrific program for individuals and families and a great program for companies to incorporate with their healthcare packages because it does reduce their healthcare costs through the reduction in claim experience. Self-insured companies and unions would be ideal candidates as would health insurance providers. We have seen a large interest from families with college-age students as well.
