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Patients with a sore throat, high fever or mystery rash in Hawaii will now be able to bypass the waiting room and find a physician's care just a click away. Doctors here plan to start making online house calls Thursday in the nation's first large-scale program of its kind that some believe could be a groundbreaking step in health care.

Dr. Roy Schoenberg, American Well's chief executive, calls the launch the "world premiere" of his technology that has been in the works for two years and is being offered around the clock, seven days a week. The service will soon be offered in several other states, and will become "very prevalent in 2009," he said.

The service is being provided in Hawaii by Hawaii Medical Service Association under a licensing agreement with Boston-based American Well. It is available for a fee to all Hawaii residents, including the uninsured and non-HMSA members. The Blue Cross/Blue Shield affiliate insures more than half the state's population.

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