science to profits

Category: Healthcare change – snapshots

  • Emergence of the 401(k) health plan?

    The idea that health insurance might follow the trajectory of retirement finance, with employer-covered insurance moving toward a defined contribution, 401(k)-style approach, rather than the current, defined benefit, Pension-like approach is one I have written about before. In today’s news (WSJ) is an article describing how a handful of employers are transforming the way they…

  • Democratization of healthcare innovation: Stethocloud

    Here is a summer story that is a counterpoint to the daily gloom and doom in the news. It’s about healthcare innovation, unlocked by some of my favorite trends: democratization of innovation;  low-cost startups; and the “death of geography”. On reflection, I am reminded of just what powerful drivers of better medicine and reduced healthcare costs…

  • Adding micro-nutrients to Quantified Self

    While it’s all doom and gloom when I attend traditional medical device meetings, the group of (often new to healthcare) technologists interested in digital health provide a refreshing contrast. Last week I had the opportunity to interact with a group of impressively pedigreed technology CTO’s who had set themselves the challenge of inventing a new…

  • Healthcare reform, and “cheap colonoscopy”

    My work last month took me to several conferences and locations, and I have come back with a collection of fascinating snapshots illustrating different ways in which the US healthcare ecosystem is responding to the pressures for change that are being exerted on it. Some are depressing, but some offer exciting glimpses of very positive…