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www.HartfordBusiness.com • August 5, 2019 • Hartford Business Journal 11 s i m s b u r y b a n k . c o m /c o m m e r c i a l Simsbury Bank knows what your small, medium or family-owned business needs to thrive. Log on or come in to see for yourself. Your Business Matters Stanley Black & Decker's Manufactory 4.0 shows the world how Industry 4.0 and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) can make American Manufacturing more competitive. Simsbury Bank's latest Manufacturing Matters podcast shares the details on this Hartford-based innovation center where Advanced Manufacturing is done right. Right in our own backyard. Connecticut Manufacturing Leads Again Listen to our complete library of Manufacturing Matters podcasts at simsburybank.com/manufacturing-matters M A T T E R S Manufacturing Matters Manufacturing Matters Manufacturing PODCAST M M Matters Manufacturing SB_Half_Horiz_HBJ_AUGUST2019.indd 1 7/25/19 9:56 AM found there are plenty of conditions he can confidently diagnose virtually, in- cluding mild allergic reactions, coughs, rashes, and in some cases even uri- nary tract infections and determining whether a laceration needs stitches. "As more people become aware of this, it's only going to grow," he said. "It's a huge opportunity for business development." "It's going to eat into the volumes seen at urgent cares, emergency rooms and primary care offices," he added. Not all urgent-care providers, how- ever, are sold on telehealth, including Dr. Michael Gutman, medical director of New England Urgent Care, which has four locations in Greater Hartford. For many conditions presented at his urgent-care facilities, he said he isn't comfortable diagnosing them virtually. "I've toyed with the idea myself of put- ting telehealth as part of our offering, but I decided not to because telehealth is such a limited tool," said Gutman. He's also skeptical that investing in a telehealth platform would increase revenue. He said that's part of the sales pitch he hears from technology providers, and he also suspects that some urgent-care facilities using tele- health are hoping it will be a referral vehicle for in-person, potentially more expensive visits. Medicaid movement Rushford's fledgling telehealth offer- ing is among more than a half-dozen ongoing or upcoming virtual-care ef- forts within Hartford HealthCare. The health system also provides telehealth services for stroke evalua- tions, wound care, urgent care, follow- up monitoring of pacemaker incisions and lactation consulting. Chris Peterson, Hartford Health- Care's director of telehealth and virtual health, said there is plenty of opportunity to scale up. "We need to find a way to open the floodgates," Peterson said. One particular hurdle to doing that, at least for now, is the state's Medicaid program. While it covers some electronic con- sults between primary care doctors and specialists, the highest-volume type of telehealth — patient-to-pro- vider care — is not covered. "Absolutely it's a hindrance that Medicaid doesn't cover telehealth," Peterson said. "Medicaid patients have a lot of health needs and can have a hard time getting to appointments. It's really critical." But the situation could be changing. At the nudging of state lawmak- ers, the Department of Social Ser- vices, overseer of the state's Medicaid program, is working on a proposal to cover patient-provider telehealth services. It wasn't clear as of press time exactly which types of telehealth services would be covered, or how long it would take to implement. More employers warming to telehealth An increasing percentage of large U.S. employers (with 200 or more workers) now offer telehealth in their medical plans, according to a recent analysis by Kaiser Family Foundation. 2015 2016 2017 2018 0 20 40 60 80 100 % of large employers covering teleheath 27% 39% 63% 74% Source: KFF 2018 survey Rushford Center Medical Director Dr J. Craig Allen discusses the care provider's medication-assisted addiction treatment program, which uses virtual patient visits. PHOTO | CONTRIBUTED