Sherpaa's take on health insurance: 24/7 phone/email access to doctors, no need for clinic visit 70% of the time

From CBS News:

Dr. Jay Parkinson is trying to change healthcare business with Sherpaa. The company gives 24/7 phone and email access to a group of doctors in New York City. "You can call or email and 70 percent of the time," Parkinson said. "We will solve that problem over email or on the phone."

For example, if you've suffered a nasty cut, you snap a picture, email it to Sherpaa, and a doctor will respond immediately with instructions. If you need stitches, Sherpaa will schedule a same-day appointment with one of the 100 specialist they work with. That could cut out the expense, and long wait on average more than four hours of a visit to the emergency room. Parkinson said instead of getting charged $4,000, it could be a $1,000 charge.

Sherpaa doesn't replace health insurance, but instead works to weed out inefficiencies, while offering a kind of everyman's concierge service. Companies like Tumblr pay about $1,000 a year per employee.

References:

Doctor's company reimagines health care delivery - CBS News http://goo.gl/DLXUd