Optum, the health services company of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), will operate the Military Health System’s (MHS) worldwide Nurse Advice Line, serving more than 9 million military service members, retirees and their families.
Currently, nurse advice line services are provided to eligible military health system beneficiaries in the United States and Eurasia. The new Global Nurse Advice Line combines these two services and adds coverage for those in the Pacific Region and Latin America. Additional enhancements to the nurse advice line will include offering communications channels other than the telephone, such as web-chat and video teleconferencing, giving beneficiaries access to their self-care instructions, and allowing users to speak with a primary care provider after nurse triage, to name just a few.
Optum was awarded the five-year, $200 million contract by the Defense Health Agency in May 2017. The Government Accountability Office recently affirmed the contract award and, after a transition period, Optum will begin serving eligible MHS beneficiaries globally with nurse advice line services in March 2018, including triage services, self-care advice, care coordination and general health advice. Optum will also provide access to telehealth primary care providers in the near future.
“Optum is honored to be selected to provide 24/7 nurse and primary care manager telehealth access for our nation’s military service members, retirees and their families,” said Patty Horoho, CEO of OptumServe, whose clients include the Departments of Defense, Veterans Affairs, and Health and Human Services. “Optum has a long history of supporting active-duty service members and veterans.
We look forward to bringing this experience and industry-leading health care capabilities to more veterans, active-duty service members and their families.”
Optum currently serves the readiness and health needs of military service members, retirees and veterans by providing preventive health screenings and assessments.
About Optum
Optum is a leading information and technology-enabled health services business dedicated to helping make the health system work better for everyone. With more than 100,000 people worldwide, Optum delivers intelligent, integrated solutions that help to modernize the health system and improve overall population health. Optum is part of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH).
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