Opear MD, a New York-based house calls company, announces a series of measures to make in-home medical diagnoses and treatment services more accessible.

Through increased house calls, private organizations hope to contain the novel coronavirus, help slow and even reduce new COVID-19 cases.

Opear MD’s apps (“Opear” and “Opear for Providers,” available for free download for iOS and Android) are designed to enable parents and guardians to schedule house calls through a subscription pricing model. However, in light of viral escalation in the New York area, the company has announced:

  • Parent subscription fees will be waived to increase accessibility
  • Provider subscription fees will be waived to maximize the staff available to citizens
  • Providers will be available – at their discretion – to treat adults as well as children
  • The company is finalizing a ride-share partnership to help providers reach more patients
  • And in upcoming weeks, it will launch new telemedicine features to further aid social distancing efforts.

By waiving subscription fees, the company has suspended for-profit activities; it will collect only a $150 exam fee, which goes directly to its doctors, nurse practitioners and supervised physician assistants, it announces in a news release.

“This is not a time to worry about profit, but to look out for the greater good,” Opear’s founder and CEO, Michael Demetriou., says in the release. “Because private organizations like Opear have the capacity to provide people access to healthcare, I believe we have a social responsibility to assist our state and health system for the sake of our fellow citizens.”

Opear urges the region’s doctors, advanced practice registered nurses and physician assistants to join its outreach effort by signing up through the app. Applications, background checks, and license/insurance verification will be expedited whenever possible to increase provider availability.

“Opear strongly encourages people to comply with the social distancing and quarantine recommendations of the CDC and World Health Organization,” Demetriou continues. “Technology gives us the means to do so more effectively than ever, and we believe it’s critical to ‘flattening the curve’ of transmission and ensuring our hospitals have the space to treat those afflicted.”

Opear believes its forthcoming telemedicine features, including video calls, will further aid in social distancing and quarantining efforts. It will announce more information on the release date soon, it notes.

[Source(s): Opear MD, PR Newswire]