January 11, 2018
User-friendly program seen as success for state’s largest self-funded healthcare plan
FRANKFORT, Ky. (January 11, 2018) – The Kentucky Personnel Cabinet and Secretary Tom Stephens announced $2.5 million in cost of care savings achieved through an innovative health and wellness service. The “LiveHealth Online Medical + Behavorial Health” initiative, made available to plan participants starting in June 2015, is a unique program allowing nearly 300,000 health plan members to take advantage of “virtual” doctor consultations and receive top-notch medical care from the convenience of their own homes at no cost to plan members.
This creative program allows participants to have access to free web-based medical professionals on-demand and saves the patients time, money and challenges in scheduling doctors’ appointments. This successful approach is viewed as an industry innovation and will continue to expand services throughout the year through enhanced outreach and marketing. In addition to medical and behavorial specialties, psychiatric “virtual visits” began in January of this year.
Secretary Stephens said, “This service is incredibly user-friendly. It lets you talk face-to-face with a doctor through your mobile device or a computer with a webcam. It’s faster, easier and more convenient than a visit to an urgent care center.”
In addition, the cost benefits to Kentucky should continue to improve as people take further advantage of this user-friendly program.
The Secretary continued, “With LiveHealth Online Medical there are no appointments, no waiting and no sitting in traffic. It’s quick, easy and connects you to a doctor of your choice in minutes.”
“As a parent, I find this program so worthwhile. Why does it seem that your child gets ill after traditional doctor’s office hours are closed?” asked Secretary Stephens.
The Kentucky Employees’ Health Plan (KEHP) is the state’s largest self-insured health plan with benefits designed in partnership with multiple vendors to provide greater access to quality healthcare with increased customer service.
The Kentucky Executive Branch is the state’s largest employer with over 30,000 employees throughout the state of Kentucky.
