UnitedHealth Group Launches Health Web Site For General Public

Main Category: IT / Internet / E-mail
Article Date: 02 Dec 2008 - 4:00 PDT

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UnitedHealth Group on Monday is launching a health Web site for the general public that will allow users to check symptoms, find specific health or disease information and store personal medical information online, the Wall Street Journal reports. The site, called myoptumhealth.com, is the first from a major health insurer that is not limited to health plan members or employees of large corporate clients. The site is run by UnitedHealth's health and wellness unit, OptumHealth.

The tools and calculators on the site will be available to users at no cost. Scott Heimes, senior vice president in OptumHealth's Consumer Solutions Division, said UnitedHealth aims to use the site to cross-sell other UnitedHealth products, such as individual medical, dental or vision plans. In addition, the company hopes to sell fee-based online care management services and health coaching by telephone for people with chronic conditions.

With the amount of health care information on the Internet and as more health care costs are being shifted to consumers, demand is high for "online help in finding information and tailoring it to a specific patient's needs," the Journal reports. According to the Journal, "Insurers are leery of ceding the growth opportunity to information or technology companies -- such as Google and Microsoft, which also have online health ventures -- especially as the industry's traditional health insurance business shrinks or stagnates as employers and individuals cut back on health coverage."

Insurer Aetna also offers a health site, called SmartSource, that uses a patient's personal information and claims data to provide specific treatment recommendations. Aetna offers the service to its own employees and to the workers of several large employer clients. It plans to expand access to the search engine next year, Aetna President Mark Bertolini said. Other insurers, such as Cigna and Humana, offer online courses and games about health issues (Fuhrmans, Wall Street Journal, 12/1).

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