TELEMEDICINE: Blue Cross Links Rural Clinics with Urban Centers
Blue Cross of California is using a $1.8 million state grant to launch a telemedicine project in hopes of increasing health care services for Californians living in rural areas, the Ventura County Star reports. The insurer plans to link more than 40 rural hospitals and clinics with six specialty sites, including Dr. Chris Landon's office at the Pediatric Diagnostic Center in Ventura. "For a lot of people, to take a day off work to go to University of California-Davis (to see a specialist) cannot be done," he said, noting that specialists at the Ventura site "will be able to consult on cases from the Mojave Desert to Crescent City near the Oregon border." Once it is up and running, Blue Cross plans to evaluate the program with an eye toward expansion if it saves money and satisfies patients and physicians (Tresaugue, 7/28).
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