Health equity in digital health
Health disparities contribute to an estimated $93B in excess U.S. medical care costs annually, almost 9x the total amount of venture funding that went to digital health startups in 2023. Providers, payers, employers, and government players are prioritizing digital programs and solutions with equity at their core—which means that digital health innovators not addressing equity gaps are missing opportunities for commercial, clinical, and social impact.
RockHealth.org’s newest publication, “A Lens on Health Equity in Digital Health: Unlocking the Innovation Opportunity,” developed in collaboration with expert advisors, is a guidebook to help accelerate the impact of equity-centered digital health initiatives. It identifies top opportunity areas for innovator and investor focus—facilitating adoption and trust, promoting responsible design, and scaling innovation—and spotlights how these approaches can address issues faced by commonly underserved communities including older adults, rural populations, and Black and Latine digital health consumers.
Headlines
ONC Drafts Federal Health IT Plan For 2024-2030
Proposed IT strategy focuses on public health, AI, and data sharing Healthcare IT News
Diabetes Care Vendors Say PHTI Study Doesn't Tell The Full Story
Startups and industry groups comment on report’s methodology and findings Axios
Amazon Launches Same-Day Prescription Delivery In NYC And LA
With plans to expand the offering to more than a dozen cities by the end of 2024 CNBC
CMS Streamlines Medicaid, CHIP Renewal And Enrollment
Removing barriers one year into the unwinding period Healthcare Dive
Washington Wants To Avert Another Change Healthcare-Like Fiasco
Enhanced cybersecurity efforts and regulations are in the works STAT
Elevance Health, Aetna Widen Coverage For Wegovy
Major insurers expand coverage as Medicare’s GLP-1 spending rises Fierce Healthcare
Recent Funding
- Pelago, a virtual substance use disorder treatment clinic, nabs $58M
- Hume AI picks up $50M for its emotionally intelligent AI for clinical research and healthcare
- Virtual nutrition and dietary coaching service Nourish munches on $35M
- Virtual mental health provider Brightside lands $33M
- InStride Health collects $30M to treat pediatric OCD and anxiety disorders
- Intellihealth grabs $24M for its medical weight loss treatment platform
- Tennr clinches $18M to scale its document automation software for medical practices
- Float Health inks $10M for its nurse staffing platform for at-home infusion services
- Comprehensive medication management solution Scriptology seeds $4M
- Chiyo, a food as medicine startup for expecting and postpartum mothers, raises $3M
- Goodbill, a claims review and billing software for self-funded health plans, secures $2M