News Release
June 18, 2008
HMSA, Microsoft and American Well to make online health care available statewide
Laura Lott
(808) 952-7566
laura_lott@hmsa.com
The Hawaii Medical Service Association (HMSA) today announced it will make online
health care services available to all Hawaii residents through a strategic collaboration
with Microsoft Corp. and American Well Inc. HMSA is the first health plan in the
nation to offer this innovative integrated consumer health solution. The announcement
was made in Honolulu today at the same time the national announcement was made at
the America’s Health Insurance Plans conference in San Francisco.
With this new service, scheduled to launch in early 2009, consumers can talk to
a local physician, specialist, or other health care provider from HMSA’s participating
provider network live on-demand via the Web or by email or telephone. The system
is available 24 hours a day.
American Well, based in Boston, works to deliver innovative health care communication
solutions. Their Online Healthcare MarketplaceTM enables live communication between
a consumer and a health care provider. Physicians can review relevant patient information,
talk with and see patients, prescribe medication as appropriate, and recommend follow-up
care.
As a part of this arrangement, Microsoft’s HealthVaultTM platform will become available
to all Hawaii residents. HealthVault is Microsoft’s online consumer health platform
and allows consumers to collect, store and manage personal health information and
share it with physicians, family members, and other trusted third parties. Consumers
can store information from multiple sources, including provider and hospital record
systems, home monitoring devices, and patient entries.
The integrated solution will allow consumers to use their health information from
HealthVault to drive online consultations with providers on the American Well system.
"We believe this service will fill an immediate need for the people of Hawaii and
improve access to health care statewide," said Michael Stollar, HMSA’s vice president
of Marketing & Communications. "This leading-edge innovation supports HMSA’s position
as a national leader in health care excellence. We are the first health plan in
the nation to offer this service, just as we pioneered programs such as the HMSA
Initiative for Innovation and Quality, our physician and hospital pay-for-performance
programs, and HMSA Now, our 24-hour digital cable channel."
"We are proud to partner with HMSA to provide the people of Hawaii access to online
health care. In realizing our collaborative vision, HMSA is leading major transformation
in U.S. health care," Ido Schoenberg, M.D., CEO of American Well said from San Francisco.
"Together, we are bringing affordable and convenient quality health care to people’s
homes."
Physician support and participation are critical to the success of this project.
In a recent study by TNS Global®, 45 percent of Hawaii physicians said they are
extremely or very likely to deliver care using the system, and viewed convenience
and improved patient care and satisfaction as key motivators to using the service.
About HMSA
HMSA is a nonprofit, mutual benefit association founded in Hawaii in 1938. It is
governed by a community board of directors that includes representatives from health
care, business, labor, government, education, clergy, and the community at large.
HMSA is a member of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of
independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans. Nationally, HMSA and 38 other Blue
Cross and Blue Shield plans provide worldwide coverage to more than 100 million
members.
About American Well
American Well has created a new healthcare marketplace where consumers and physicians
can come together online to acquire and provide convenient and immediate healthcare
services. Using the latest technologies in Web communications and digital telephony,
American Well extends traditional healthcare services to the home setting. American
Well is committed to supporting health plans in meeting consumer and employer demand
for affordable, efficient and immediate access to quality care. For more information,
please visit www.americanwell.com.
About Microsoft
Founded in 1975, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) is the worldwide leader in software, services
and solutions that help people and businesses realize their full potential. For
more information, please visit www.microsoft.com.
####