Cassatly Sarah, Cassatly Michael
J Med Pract Manage. 2016 Nov;32(3):198-201.
Telehealth, the delivery of health-related services and information via digital communication technologies, is a rapidly emerging, innovative, cost-effective and efficient way to deliver healthcare. There are three main types of telehealth: store and forward; remote monitoring; and real-time interactive services. Smartphone applications, or apps, that connect a provider with a patient, known as "connective health apps," fall under this umbrella of telehealth and can function in all three of the categories. As the Affordable Care Act legislates to improve quality, lower costs, and expand coverage, connective health apps are an important aspect of the Act. This article addresses to what extent the Affordable Care Act and private insurers cover and promote connective health apps and discusses the potential limitations and benefits of these apps and the best ways to integrate them in the future.
远程医疗是指通过数字通信技术提供与健康相关的服务和信息，它是一种迅速兴起的、创新的、具有成本效益且高效的医疗保健提供方式。远程医疗主要有三种类型：存储转发；远程监测；以及实时交互服务。将医疗服务提供者与患者连接起来的智能手机应用程序，即“连接健康应用程序”，属于远程医疗的范畴，并且可以在所有这三个类别中发挥作用。随着《平价医疗法案》立法旨在提高质量、降低成本并扩大覆盖范围，连接健康应用程序是该法案的一个重要方面。本文探讨了《平价医疗法案》和私人保险公司在多大程度上涵盖并推广连接健康应用程序，并讨论了这些应用程序的潜在局限性和益处以及未来将它们整合的最佳方式。
