A new company based in Clearwater, Florida, launched Tuesday, introducing its model involving telemedicine kiosks that can dispense prescription medications.

The business, OnMed, comes about after six years of development as well as the securing of private equity funding. A few members of its leadership team — including president and CEO Austin White; chairman of the board Leonard Solie; and CTO Ryan Brock — come from MD Plus, a telemedicine organization that is also OnMed’s sister company.

Each patented, HIPAA compliant OnMed station includes an exam room with switchable glass for privacy, a door that locks and ultraviolet lighting to ensure the air and surfaces are free of pathogens.

Additionally, each unit uses 3D facial recognition for patient identification. As far as patient visits, the OnMed stations are equipped with thermal imaging to get body temperature and diagnose infection, as well as tools for capturing height, weight and blood pressure. High definition video and audio ensure doctors can inspect patient vitals.

In a phone interview, White explained the stations are primarily for patients with non-life threatening conditions like colds, rashes and fevers. He mentioned the stations could also be used for wellness and fitness programs.

“Beyond that, we’re not trying to take over the primary care role,” White added. However, patients do have the option to securely transmit results from their visit to their primary care physician.

White said OnMed will have providers licensed in each state where the OnMed station is deployed. And depending on the station location, the company can also strike a contract with a nearby health system that has its own telehealth group. The physicians from that system’s group can then be OnMed providers. White noted that the company is currently in conversations with a few such groups as it looks to deploy in their state.

At the end of a telehealth visit, the provider can also prescribe medications. Each OnMed unit includes a locked dispensary, which contains a number of the most commonly prescribed medications in the most commonly prescribed dosages, White explained. There aren’t any narcotics in the dispensaries; rather, they contain antibiotics and antihistamines, all of which are prepackaged and prelabeled.

As for payment methods, OnMed accepts most major insurance plans. In some cases, a visit is reimbursable by Medicare and Medicaid. Patients can also pay with credit cards or cash.

White noted that OnMed can utilize a few business models depending on the station’s host location. For instance, if a station is placed at a large university, OnMed can charge the college on a per member per month basis. The unit can be put on campus at no charge, though there will be a maintenance fee, White said.

The Florida company said its kiosks can be put in airports, hotels, colleges, hospitals and at large private employers. White said the first two units will be deployed in northern Mississippi. The company also has letters of intent with other clients in multiple states, he noted. The plan is to roll out the units this year.

OnMed’s overall goal is to “provide affordable access to quality healthcare for everybody,” White said.

While its medication dispensaries differentiate it from others in the space, OnMed is not the first company to make use of telehealth kiosks.

Flagler Health+, an enterprise out of Florida-based Flagler Hospital, recently said it will open three telehealth sites at three Publix supermarkets. Publix will also open an on-site pharmacy at Flagler Hospital.

Another company, HealthSpot, provided its own telehealth kiosks and had partners like Cleveland Clinic and Rite Aid. But the Dublin, Ohio-based organization abruptly ceased operations at the end of 2015. It then filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy liquidation.

Photo: OnMed