NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Tuesday, November 17, 2015

The Atlanta, Georgia-based international supplier of on-demand software and e-commerce services to the insurance, financial and healthcare industries, Ebix Inc., recently announced it gas launched its telemedicine service, “Ask a Doctor,” throughout the state of Rajasthan.

The service will be available at more than 33,000 kiosks throughout the Indian state, and is part of the state government’s eMitra initiative.

Ebix and the government jointly signed an agreement for the launch of the “Ask a Doctor” service, which will allow a resident to seek advice from a doctor about a health issue.

“The program is expected to solve healthcare issues faced by the people of Rajasthan, by empowering them to take early interventional steps to prevent health problems,” Ebix chief executive officer Robin Raina told India-West in an e-mail. “Currently, there is a large gap between the medical needs of the people and the services being offered in the state.

“For instance, Rajasthan has only 1,528 primary health centers against a requirement of 2,326, and only 382 community health centers against a requirement of 581,” the Indian American added. “There are only 14 obstetricians and gynecologists at health centers against a requirement of 382, and only 148 general physicians at health centers against a requirement of 1,528.”