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Teladoc (TDOC) Ties Up to Offer Virtual Care for NLA Members

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Teladoc Health, Inc. (TDOC - Free Report) recently expanded ties with the largest alliance of labor unions and labor management coalitions — the National Labor Alliance of Health Care Coalitions (“NLA”). As a result of the move, TDOC’s virtual care products and services portfolio will be extended to NLA this time. The alliance is likely to strengthen the position of Teladoc Health as a leading comprehensive virtual healthcare services provider.

It is worth mentioning that Teladoc Health has been aiding the member organization since 2016, back when TDOC commenced delivering Expert Medical Services to NLA. In due course of time, TDOC’s offering continued to fetch effective results for NLA’s members, which persuaded it to expand ties with Teladoc Health in 2020. Last year, general medical, dermatology and mental health services from TDOC’s diversified healthcare suite were offered to NLA.

Following the recent partnership, an extensive portfolio comprising general medical, specialty care, mental health, expert medical services, chronic condition management and virtual primary care programs can be availed by NLA’s Coalitions and subsequently their member Funds. As a result of the latest initiative, more than six million covered lives across the United States and Canada, which are served by NLA’s members, will benefit.

Consequently, members availing the abovementioned products and services of Teladoc Health will be provided with whole-person virtual care following an in-depth understanding of each person’s unique needs. The approach strives to upgrade care quality, provide better health outcomes and reduce healthcare expenses. As most employers now prefer to offer whole-person remote care to their employees, TDOC seems well-poised to capitalize on the prevailing scenario, courtesy of the digital healthcare solutions suite.

The recent tie-up reinforces Teladoc Health’s continuous efforts to integrate digital care within a nation’s healthcare system, which often leads to seamless access to healthcare services. The development is also likely to bolster TDOC’s footprint across the United States and Canada as NLA’s members are stretched throughout these two countries.

Initiatives similar to the latest one seem to be time opportune as well. Following access to Teladoc Health’s virtual care services, Labor members can avail medical care for which they don’t have to sacrifice their working hours that otherwise could have resulted in substantial wage losses.

Virtual care has been in huge demand since 2020 and the demand has shown no signs of slowing down. With rise of new COVID-19 variants, people continue to prefer receiving the much-needed healthcare services within the comfort of one’s home. Per Fortune Business Insights, the global telehealth market is projected to witness a CAGR of 32.1% over the 2021-2028 period.

The robust telehealth platform of Teladoc Health requires a special mention, which played a crucial role in addressing the health needs of people amid the pandemic. TDOC has devised this platform through advanced technologies, partnering with well-established healthcare providers and substantial investments. In July 2021, the virtual care provider collaborated with Microsoft to ease administrative workflows for clinicians and offer enhanced virtual care to patients.

Similar to Teladoc Health, other players in the medical space namely UnitedHealth Group Incorporated (UNH - Free Report) , Centene Corporation (CNC - Free Report) and Cigna Corporation (CI - Free Report) , have been offering telehealth services and remain well-poised to gain amid the growing popularity of remote services.

UnitedHealth Group has been making concerted efforts to bolster its telehealth services suite. The initiatives of UNH range from collaborating with well-known companies, launching teledentistry services to inaugurating a digital health therapy with an aim to bring about improved health outcomes for people suffering from type 2 diabetes. The launch of the new virtual care model Right2You by UnitedHealth Group’s business UnitedHealthcare aims to provide its members with an online service for custom-programmed hearing aids.

Centene has been making every effort to offer telehealth offerings across every corner of the United States including the underserved ones. For this purpose, CNC collaborated with Samsung Electronics America last year. With digitization an integral part of daily lives, Centene has acquired Apixio for availing enhanced AI technology solutions and digitizing its administrative activities.

Cigna is well-poised to tap the growing telehealth market on its buyout of MDLIVE, a privately-held leading 24/7 virtual care delivery platform. In the beginning of 2021, CI welcomed Iora Health to bolster its Medicare Advantage network. It also counted on the fact that Iora has a proven track record of offering primary care in the form of clinic or telehealth visits for seniors enrolled in Medicare plans through health specialists. Cigna continues to make substantial investments in boosting its telehealth services suite.

Price Performances

Shares of Teladoc Health have lost 44% in the past six months compared with the industry’s decline of 50.1%. TDOC currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).  You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

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While shares of UnitedHealth Group and Centene have gained 26.6% and 15.8%, respectively, in the past six months, Cigna stock has lost 5.8% in the same time frame.

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