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AvMed Health Plans to Offer Online Personal Health Records to All Members in Florida

Posted on: Wednesday, 31 January 2007, 09:01 CST

MIAMI, Jan. 31 /PRNewswire/ -- An electronic personal health record system that allows patients to better manage their healthcare needs will soon be unveiled to all AvMed Health Plans' members statewide.

AvMed is offering the personal health record system, known as iHealth, to members this Spring. AvMed is partnering with Medem Inc. of San Francisco, the developer of iHealth, to provide this state-of-the-art benefit to members.

The creation of electronic personal health records for all Americans is a healthcare priority of President Bush, healthcare policy leaders and Congress. With the introduction of iHealth, AvMed is ensuring its members are at the forefront of this national movement.

"AvMed has always focused on delivering the highest quality healthcare and completely satisfying our members," said Doug Cueny, AvMed's President and CEO. "The iHealth system will help our members to save time and money, and will enable them to better manage their healthcare needs."

"As Florida's hometown health plan -- one that focuses exclusively on serving Floridians -- we pride ourselves on offering local service with all of the amenities of a large national plan," Cueny added. "Electronic personal health records are the next logical step for us in assisting our members to become better healthcare consumers."

AvMed will introduce the iHealth system this Spring. Members will be able to access the iHealth system through AvMed's website. Through iHealth, members can create confidential, comprehensive personal health records for themselves and their families. Members control these records, which can be accessed at any time, and can choose to share them with their doctors, pharmacists, health plans or other systems.

The value of iHealth is that members will ultimately be able to provide their doctors with their complete medical history instantly, which eliminates time wasted sending paper files by mail or having to repeatedly recite information to a doctor or his staff.

Additionally, iHealth benefits members by providing them a steady stream of medical information tailored to their specific needs. For example, members can sign up for health education programs relevant to their personal health issues or interests. If they suffer a chronic condition, such as diabetes, iHealth sends them regular reminders on medications and other care management tips. And members receive instant alerts if the Food and Drug Administration issues a medication warning or recall which impacts them.

Medem's iHealth system is designed to meet national standards for compatibility with other personal health record systems and is transportable throughout the patient's life.

"Enhanced consumer engagement in their health, improved healthcare efficiency and elimination of the medical clipboard as the primary means for exchanging patient information are concepts upon which the government and healthcare industry have focused," said Dr. Edward Fotsch, CEO of Medem Inc. "But it takes progressive providers like AvMed Health Plans to translate personal health record potential into reality to realize real improvements in healthcare cost and quality."

In the past two years, AvMed has introduced new low-cost, consumer-driven health plans that allow members to better manage their personal healthcare spending. AvMed also offers members an online tool, Healthcare Advisor, which helps members learn more about health-related topics, find a doctor, choose a hospital and determine the cost of treatments they might need.

"The new iHealth personal health record is another step in empowering AvMed's members and putting them in the driver's seat when it comes to the healthcare needs of themselves and their families," Cueny said.

About AvMed Health Plans

AvMed Health Plans has been serving Floridians for more than 35 years. Through an extensive physician network, AvMed provides access to health care coverage to large and small employer groups around the state. Additionally, AvMed offers health care products to Medicare beneficiaries in South Florida. As Florida's Hometown Health Plan, AvMed prides itself on providing members and clients highly personalized service and all the advantages of a nationally competitive health plan. AvMed has offices in Miami, Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach, Orlando, Tampa, Gainesville and Jacksonville. For more information, visit http://www.avmed.org/

About Medem, Inc.

Based in San Francisco and incorporated in 1999, Medem was founded by the AMA and several national medical specialty societies to develop and provide secure, online communications services for use by physicians and other healthcare providers, including hospitals, health systems, etc., with their patients. Together with a broad constituent of industry partners, medical societies, patient advocacy groups and government agencies, Medem is uniquely positioned to transform the healthcare delivery experience for physicians and their patients.

Tens of thousands of physician practices, along with numerous health systems, hospitals, payors and employers, have implemented iHealth Services to improve consumer engagement, advance disease management, increase efficiency and decrease costs. iHealth Services provides the connectivity between community and regional stakeholders in healthcare which will fulfill the vision of interoperable health records for all Americans by 2014.

AvMed Health Plans

CONTACT: Conchita Ruiz-Topinka, Director, Public Relations of AvMedHealth Plans, +1-305-671-7306

Web site: http://www.avmed.org/

Source: PRNewswire

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