October 23, 2008

Carol

Wayne Glowac

Marketing, healthcare and the Internet merge into carol.com as further support that Healthcare Consumerism is taking hold.

The site is designed for all patients, but currently only serves Minneapolis/St. Paul and Seattle. A patient can sign on, find a physician, and schedule appointments using his or her insurance. But instead of just serving as a digital secretary, Carol shows the user exactly how much a particular visit would cost, and how much of it is the patient’s burden.

Essentially, it’s a cost-comparison resource for healthcare consumers. Instead of having to wait to get a bill, patients can see up-front what their costs are estimated to be, and they can shop around for services. Even though its service area is small now, you can expect to see Carol, and similar sites, really take off as the consumerism wave strengthens.

Check it out at www.carol.com

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