Analysis Uncovers Up to $150 Million in Value Attributed to Southern California eConsult Programs

Four Southern California counties facilitate more than 300,000 virtual consultations a year, returning significant value across the region

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Safety Net Connect (SNC), a leading provider of advanced virtual care solutions, has found that the regional eConsult programs across Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, and San Bernardino counties represent an annual organizational and community value of up to $150 million, according to theoretical modeling. This value was gleaned by applying the learnings from nationwide studies to the volume and experience of eConsult in the region, focusing on multiple areas of value the programs return across key pillars of its use cases.

Implemented over the past decade across four counties, Southern California’s eConsult programs enable physicians to conduct specialist consultations electronically across safety-net, public health, and correctional care settings. In partnership with Safety Net Connect, the regional virtual network now facilitates more than 306,000 electronic consultations annually.

Local providers leverage the eConsult network of 1,300 primary and specialty care physicians to gain specialist insight and clinically sound guidance for patient cases. The programs boast a virtual resolution rate of up to 65% regionwide, curbing a quarter of the counties’ in-person specialist appointments, and typically returning consultations within a day.

“Prior to eConsult, some of our specialist appointments may have taken nine months or more, depending on the specialty,” said Dr. Paul Giboney, associate chief medical officer at LADHS. “Now, our virtual specialty requests can turn around specialist insights and guidance within twenty-four hours. In my opinion, that’s the strongest value of the program, but obviously the impact is so much greater than that.”

Measured across four pillars of value, SoCal’s eConsult programs are estimated to annually generate:

• $25 million return on investment — measured through avoided specialty visits, provider time savings, and operational efficiencies.
• $65 million return on impact — measured through faster access to specialty care, reduced emergency department utilization, prevented hospitalizations, and improved chronic disease management.
• $40 million return on innovation — measured through improved clinical decision-making, cross-county care coordination, and population health advancements.
• $20 million return on individuals — measured in patient cost savings, reduced travel and lost wages, and improved access for underserved populations.

“By applying national studies to Southern California programs’ volumes, we can see not just the cost-savings of eConsult, but also the widespread effect it can have on other areas within the health system,” said Keith Matsutsuyu, co-founder and CEO of Safety Net Connect. “This approach is much more holistic than simply looking at a singular return on investment, and establishes a baseline for the value a program brings, especially critical as public health organizations face increasing pressures to showcase value and do more with less resources.”

About Safety Net Connect

On a mission to connect patients with the services and specialist insights they need, Safety Net Connect (SNC) provides healthcare organizations with technology solutions that place critical resources and information directly into provider hands. Our suite of scalable products drives value across operations, including care coordination, referrals, eConsults, and more. Long-standing Medicaid, state, payer and provider partners use SNC to close care gaps, improve coordination, facilitate access and support provider workflows, ultimately improving outcomes across tens of millions of patient lives. Learn more: safetynetconnect.com.