HealthTech Maine. Three Healthcare Business Development Opportunities

Transcription

1 With numerous business development opportunities available to exploit in the U.S. $2.8 trillion dollars New Health Economy, HealthTech Maine has identified three emerging growth sectors offering Maine s health technology entrepreneurs a chance to profit from the development of innovative, market-driven technologies. The three unique business opportunities are (1) Patient Portals, (2) Healthcare Gamification, and (3) Biometrics. Healthcare Gamification $10 Billion By 2015 Patient Portals $900 Million By 2017 Biometrics $5.8 Billion By 2019 Patient Portals In Xerox s 2014 annual survey on electronic health records (EHRs), conducted by Harris Poll, the results indicated, a majority of Americans (64 percent) do not currently use online patient portals, but more than half of those who don t use portals (57 percent) say they would be much more interested and proactive in their personal healthcare if they had online access to their medical records. 1

2 The report also showed: Among those who do not use patient portals, 35 percent did not know a portal was available and 31 percent said their physician had never spoken to them about portals. Among Americans who do use online patient portals, 59 percent say they have been much more interested and proactive in their personal healthcare since they received access. Forecasted to generate nearly $900 million by 2017, up from $280 million in 2012, patient portals are Web-based applications allowing patients and healthcare providers to interact and communicate. The technology use is promoted as a significant method to increase patient engagement and for healthcare providers to meet the federal government s Stage 2 meaningful use requirements, under the HITECH Act. Although a reported 50 percent of U.S. hospitals and 40 percent of U.S. physicians employ patient portals, all hospitals and physicians are expected use them by More importantly, the portals, required under Stage 2, are expected to demonstrate at least five percent of patients are electronically viewing, downloading and transmitting health information. While industry expert expect the portal market to grow substantially, there are road blocks slowing down technology adoption. A 2014 HIMSS Analytics Research survey showed healthcare IT executives, in charge of implementing patient portal development, acknowledged that few providers have selected software that enable patients to fully engage. Healthcare IT security specialists voice concerns that patient files are not fully protected. Patients low utilization is a significant obstacle preventing technology adoption. Although patient portal deployment is dominated by large corporate vendors, startups and smaller firms have a chance to earn a sufficient share of the market. For instance, assisting hospitals and physician practices with developing effective patient education and/or outreach strategies offer startups, such as marketing or communication firms, an opening to produce generous revenues. Smaller healthcare IT firms, according to industry experts, can generate business by helping physicians implement portal systems that integrate with electronic health record (EHR) systems purchased from large vendors. 2

3 Healthcare Gamification Estimated to reach $10 billion in 2015, gamification offers consumers, especially the 50+ health consumer market, a proactive way to improve or manage their health conditions. Health conscientious consumers use games to learn about and execute changes in their behaviors that result in a healthier lifestyle. For instance, seniors utilize online games, incorporating social media, to challenge friends, neighbors or family members regarding reaching targeted physical fitness levels or goals. Industry observers view gamification as a valuable patient engagement tool. A well designed game integrating health education, fun, physical activities, motivational techniques, social networking capabilities and rewards system (e.g. cash, points, coupons, etc.) has the potential of attracting and engaging patients who are interested in self-managing and ameliorating their health conditions. Some games help players record health data like blood sugar level and weight gain/loss. The industry s primary targeted customers, both buyers and users, are seniors and millennials. With a sizeable number of the U.S. senior population battling chronic diseases, startups recognize this group s desire to purchase games that combine health information, social interaction opportunities and support health maintenance. In the case of millennials, 18 to 34 year olds, the world of gaming is second nature since many have grown up playing video games. This group, more importantly, is more inclined to incorporate gamified apps as a part of their physical fitness routine. Besides seniors and millennials, health insurers and private corporations are embracing health games. These companies, in particular, offer members and employees access to health games as a part of their wellness programs. For instance, Aetna, Cigna, Humana, and UnitedHealth present health games to their members. M2 Research s industry report noted: In 2016, businesses will spend an estimated $2.8 on gamification. Gamification s biggest challenge is offering games that do not violate federal patient privacy regulations under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). Healthcare providers, including insurers and hospitals, are especially required to protect consumer/patient players personal data. Private companies, outside of the healthcare industry, offering games fall under the same restrains. Conquering this significant industry challenge offers huge financial rewards for a startup or an existing participating company. 3

4 Healthcare Biometrics HealthTech Maine Patient confirmation, data access control and fraud prevention are the principal uses of biometrics in healthcare. In fact, many hospitals use biometrics for staff and patient verification. The technology is viewed as a reliable, cost-effective security measure. The technology is defined as the science of identifying individuals through physical characteristics. Anticipated to reach $5.8 billion by 2019, the market is divided into seven areas: (1) face recognition, (2) signature recognition, (3) vein recognition, (4) hand recognition, (5) finger recognition, (6) voice recognition and (7) iris recognition. Fingerprint recognition represents the largest market segment used by healthcare facilities. While fingerprint is used most widely, iris recognition is developing a significant following in healthcare. Iris recognition, for example, is used to deter identify theft and medical fraud. Healthcare officials believe iris recognition can contribute to reducing costly patient health record duplications. Biometrics is being deployed as an authentication mechanism to access electronic health records. Biometric developers, for instance, are working with EHR vendors, like Allscripts and Epic, to integrate the two technologies. Promoters believe the integrated technologies will save medical personnel time and make EHR data more secure. Compared to other industries, like finance, applying biometrics in healthcare is at a nascent stage. The technology advocates and healthcare administrators see biometrics playing a valuable, supporting role towards reducing expenditures by minimizing security risk. In addition, they believe biometrics can assist with curbing costly medical errors. Startups seeking to offer biometrics healthcare solutions will find a fragmented, consolidating market with many large and small competitors. 3M, NEC Corporation, Siemens, AG, and Bio-Key International are some of the recognizable industry participants. The larger companies are busy acquiring smaller ones as a means to growth. Smaller companies are seeking partnerships in order to compete in the industry. Overall, the marketplace is open to startups ready to compete in a dynamic marketplace. Exploiting Healthcare Business Development Opportunities Whether it is biometrics, patient portals, gamification or other exciting healthcare technology industry segments, right now is the best time to start and grow a health related small 4

5 business. Demand is growing for original, cost-effective products and technologies as the U.S. healthcare system undertakes changes on how it conducts business and cares for patients. The system is counting on both traditional vendors and startups to provide innovative solutions during this transformation. With $4.7 billion invested in startups and emerging health IT companies and $2.7 billion in startup and emerging medical technology firms during 2014, private investors are betting on healthcare entrepreneurs to develop and supply new solutions demanded by the U.S. healthcare system. Experts expect millions of more dollars flowing to startups with novel concepts that exploit business development opportunities in the U.S. healthcare industry. Funding from the Maine Technology Institute (MTI) and Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR), help Maine health technology entrepreneurs start and grow small high technology firms to supply needed medical technologies or health IT solutions in the changing U.S. healthcare system. Health technology entrepreneurs can access MTI business development dollars, from TechStart to Business Accelerator grants, required to initiate business planning and business development processes. Furthermore, MTI s Phase 0 KickStarter grant is accessible to help health technology entrepreneurs apply for new medical technology development funding from the federal government s SBIR program. SBIR is a small business development program. It encourages and enables entrepreneurs to compete for research and development (R&D) nondilutive funding to create market-driven novel medical technologies or healthcare IT solutions. Startups, via a competitive proposal submission process, seek two rounds of seed funding. The first round, referred to as Phase I, offers $150,000 - $225,000, for a six month proof of concept study; while the second round, referred to as Phase II, offers $750,000 - $1.5 million for the production of a product prototype over two years. About HealthTech Maine In addition to assisting Maine health technology entrepreneurs formulate and start new small health technology firms, we help them acquire Maine Technology Institute and Small Business Innovation Research grants. We also help our clients identify available private capital investment dollars that supports full commercialize of their innovative medical technologies or novel health IT solutions. Please contact Mr. Darrell Williams at (207) or Darrell@healthtechmaine.com for more information on how we can help you or your company succeed. 5