Teladoc: Functioning, Revenue Streams & More

Telemedicine is definitely not a new idea. Since the birth of video-calling, experts thought that telemedicine will revolutionize the industry. Analysts bullishly suggested that the market could be worth $4.5B by 2018, a number which has been long surpassed. Keeping all these factors in mind, back in 2002, a small start-up called “Teladoc” saw this opportunity and grabbed it. Currently, a US-based, global leader in virtual care, Teladoc Health is where doc is just a call away. Founded in 2002, it is the largest virtual care company in the United States serving over 170 countries.

Post Pandemic Boom

Post Covid these numbers have seen a substantial boom, Teladoc Health saw a staggering 92% jump in visits in Q1 2020 owing to the pandemic with total revenue of $180 million. With lockdowns and a growing preference for virtual care solutions, the figures do not come as a surprise. The trend majorly shows traffic from domestic visits. The virtual care giant also saw a 41% year-over-year increase in revenue. The paid memberships in the domestic market jumped to $43 million with a year-over-year increase of 60.8%. The total number of member visits in the US spiked at 88.7% with $19 million visit-only fee.

The services utilized by paid members rose to 13.36% from 11% year-over-year largely due to an increased volume of stay-at-home-based inquiries.

A higher revenue and customer visits compared to the pre-pandemic era are expected for sure but the company also foresees an eventual decline in stay-at-home orders along with lower copays once the patients go back to offline healthcare providers. With that, the total Q2 revenue is expected to plummet to $225 million with total visits around 2.4 million. The platform currently enjoys a pretty high rating from patients and physicians alike and has more than 2 million mobile app downloads, over 50 million members and 12,000 clients.

Here’s a timeline for TELADOC’s major milestones.

So how does Teladoc work?

Teladoc Health can be accessed via call or videoconferencing for on-demand remote medical aid. The basic idea being that patients can remotely consult over 3,000 state-licensed doctors at a time suitable to them.

Organizations associated with the virtual healthcare provider pay a subscription fee for their employees to avail the services while individuals pay a flat sum for every appointment.
Teladoc Health services can be essentially categorized into six broad divisions: telehealth, guidance and support, mental health services, integrated virtual care, platform and program services, and expert medical services.
The company boasts a network of 55,000 medical professionals dispensing their expertise in 450 subspecialties in over 40 languages.
The healthcare practitioners associated with Teladoc Health strictly adhere to the guidelines formulated by the company which includes no in-person consultations with their patients.

Who all does Teladoc serve?

The virtual care giant serves some of the world’s leading organizations across industries and sectors. It collaborates with hospitals, insurance companies, healthcare providers, and health delivery. In 2019, Teladoc recorded over 4 million virtual care visits. This trend is expected to scale up as more and more people across the globe seem to get cozy to the idea of online consultation and doctor visits.

Employers around the world: From Fortune 500 companies to Small Businesses, public sector or labour unions – Teladoc caters to all.
Insurance companies: Teladoc has partnered with over 70 global insurers in order to provide exceptional virtual care services. Members while building relationships with Teladoc Health know they are risk-free and protected. The financial and insurance companies offer that security to their policyholders while Teladoc adds value to these insurers.
Health plans: Teladoc Health collaborates with over 50 health plans in the United States to intensify the adoption of virtual care by more people than before.
Hospitals and health providers: Teladoc works closely with health systems and hospitals the world over to provide the best virtual care services in the industry.

Takeaway

Telemedicine is a barometer of changing socio-economic issues in the health systems. It’s a tool for measuring the current challenges and new trends and patterns rising in the healthcare industry. Its significance in the deployment of health resources, better demand management, lesser number of hospital trips for an efficient and sustainable health system only makes it a crucial service.