Ro and Ribbon Health Partner To Promote Better Continuity of Care for Patients Between Telehealth and In-Person Providers

By
Stephanie St. Thomas
June 16, 2020
Partnership enables telehealth patients to more easily find and connect with in-person primary and specialty care providers nationwide when needed

NEW YORK, NY – June 16, 2020 — Ro, a leading U.S. telehealth company, and Ribbon Health, an innovative healthcare data platform, today announced a partnership to close the gap between telehealth and in-person providers and promote better continuity of care for patients. Through this unique partnership, patients using Ro’s telehealth services will now have a seamless way to access the in-person care they need from Ribbon’s comprehensive nationwide directory of primary and specialty healthcare providers. Recognizing the challenges patients face navigating the healthcare system, Ro and Ribbon Health will now offer a better solution to finding accurate and reliable information on providers, including contact information, location, services offered, accepted insurance, and quality indicators.

Since launching in 2017, Ro has facilitated more than 4 million digital healthcare visits across its three digital health clinics — Roman, for men’s health, Rory, for women’s health, and Zero, for fighting addiction to smoking. By integrating Ribbon’s comprehensive information on providers, Ro-affiliated providers will be able to connect patients to the appropriate in-person provider when their unique healthcare needs necessitate it. Ro-affiliated providers can help patients find the right provider in their area by easily pre-filling the specialty of the physician they should see and using the patient’s zip code on file. Patients can then further filter results by insurance coverage, languages spoken, and provider gender. This partnership makes Ro the first and only U.S. telehealth company to seamlessly connect patients to in-person providers across the country.

“Ro’s mission is to become a patient’s first call for all of their healthcare needs, and when that means guiding them to the right in-person care, we want that experience to be as simple and as easy as possible,” said Zachariah Reitano, co-founder and CEO of Ro. “Ro’s partnership with Ribbon Health showcases what’s possible when we start to connect telehealth and in-person care more closely — expanding access to care, increasing transparency around price and quality of care, and promoting the continuity of patient care.”  

Nearly half of Americans have skipped or delayed needed medical care because of COVID-19, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation; yet, as stay-at-home restrictions ease, most expect to get the delayed care in the next three months. With many patients turning to telehealth during the pandemic, this partnership will help patients get the care they need and better connect the telehealth and in-person patient experience. Ro can help patients share their health information with providers outside of Ro’s platform, and automatically flags potential risk factors, such as medication contraindications, which can also be shared with in-person providers. This is just one step to improve the continuity of care between telehealth and in-person care, and can help patients and the providers they see manage their health more effectively.

“We have a joint vision with Ro, one where patients can easily find high-quality, affordable healthcare. The pandemic has sparked widespread disruptions in our healthcare system, creating new anxieties and confusion for patients about when, where, and how to seek care,” says Nate Maslak, co-founder and CEO of Ribbon Health. “We’re proud to work with Ro to make it simple for patients to find the best provider and close the gaps between telehealth and in-person care.”

Ribbon provides critical infrastructure to power accurate provider directories, reliable referral management, and efficient care navigation. Ribbon is the only solution to offer all of these capabilities in one platform and does so through a seamless API layer that easily integrates into any workflow to improve connectivity across the health system. Ribbon is uniquely able to deliver the most comprehensive data on doctors, insurance plans, and cost and quality measures because the platform culls information from thousands of sources as it spreads and is used.

About Ro

Founded in 2017, Ro is a patient-driven telehealth company that puts you in control of your health. We’re patients, just like you, building technology to make healthcare accessible, affordable, and maybe even enjoyable. Ro powers three digital health clinics — Roman for men’s health, Rory for women’s health, and Zero for fighting smoking addiction — as well as Ro Pharmacy, a simple and affordable online pharmacy where every medication is $5 per month. The company’s nationwide networking of physicians and pharmacies provides a personalized, end-to-end healthcare experience from online treatment to the delivery of medication and ongoing care. Visit Ro.co for more information.

About Ribbon Health

Ribbon Health is a health care data platform that provides the critical infrastructure that payers, providers, and digital health companies need to enable accurate provider directories, reliable referral management, and efficient care navigation. Ribbon offers a seamless API layer that integrates into each health care organization’s existing workflow to build connectivity across the industry and continuously improve the accuracy of its data with its spread and use. Ribbon is the only solution to offer all of these capabilities in one platform, and delivers the most comprehensive data on doctors, insurance plans, and the cost and quality of care culled from thousands of sources. By providing this infrastructure, Ribbon delivers on its mission of making it easy for every health care decision to be high-quality, cost-effective, and convenient. For more information, go to https://www.ribbonhealth.com/ or follow us on LinkedIn or Twitter @ribbonhealthAPI.

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