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Telemedicine kiosks arrive in Florida

Jacksonville, Florida-based Crowley Maritime will be the first company in the region to try a telepresence health care kiosk. Florida legislatures are currently discussing regulations on this type of kiosk.

September 23, 2015

Jacksonville, Florida-based company Crowley Maritime will be the first in the region to try atelepresence health care kiosk, according to a report by WJCT. This kiosk, developed by HealthSpot, enables Crowley Maritime employees to consult with a doctor for a minor ailment without leaving work.

"Like, if someone came with abdominal pain, that requires more testing, and hands-on [treatment], that we cannot treat from the kiosk, but other than that, all the minor illnesses, yes we do," said Bernoune Fils, nurse practitioner at Miami Children's Hospital.

Currently in Florida, lawmakers have not agreed on the regulations, but some lawmakers are trying to expand it. Currently, telemedicine is not covered by Medicaid or other types of insurance in Florida. Also, some lawmakers are not happy with out-of-state doctors treating patients in Florida.

However, both Senate Health Policy Chairman Aaron Bean and Miami Children's Telemedicine Manager Bill Manzie believe legislators will be able to find common ground on this issue.

"I say that because we've had many state representatives visit Nicklaus Children's Hospital as well as the speaker to see how we are operationalizing and managing the telehealth operations," Manzie said.