Healthcare Reform to Boost Telehealth 55% in 2013

Healthcare Reform to Boost Growth in Telehealth Market by 55 Percent in 2013

Austin, TX 19 Dec 2012 – From 2010 to 2011 usage of remote patient monitoring, or telehealth, increased by 22.2 percent as the number of patients enrolled worldwide reached 241,200. However, telehealth device revenues only grew by 5.0 percent from 2010 to 2011; and 18.0 percent from 2011 to 2012. InMedica, a division of IMS Research (now part of IHS Inc.) attributes slow revenue growth over the last year to poor economic conditions leading to restrictions in healthcare funding particularly in Europe, and ambiguity on the impact of healthcare reform and readmission penalties on telehealth in the U.S.

In the U.S., there remained considerable uncertainty on the future of the US healthcare market and the role of telehealth in this market throughout 2012. As the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) began penalizing U.S. hospitals for readmissions in October 2012, many healthcare providers remained unclear on the potential impacts on their institutions and are yet to implement a post-acute care plan.

A common sentiment among the providers recently interviewed by InMedica was that, if they are being paid fee-for-service, it will be difficult to justify telehealth. The more pre-paid dollars they can receive (internally and from payers), and the more focus on quality and outcome, the more they can look at implementation. Essentially, if providers can receive payment regardless of whether a patient receives services in or out of the practice, then they have an incentive to move forward. That said, many still have not found the right mix of tools and software applications.

We have many more articles on Telehealth and Remote Sensor Monitoring, including Will the Affordable Care Act Help Telehealth Flourish? As you browse through the list, notice the link to Older Entries at the bottom of the page.

Telehealth is projected to be increasingly incorporated into post-acute care strategies from 2013; it is listed by CMS as one of 13 possible models to reduce readmissions. In addition, as a larger number of patients enter the insurance pool, healthcare payers are projected to adopt telehealth as a population management tool to reduce in-patient costs. Consequently, InMedica forecasts that in 2013, the telehealth market will grow by 55 percent worldwide, in terms of device and service revenues. Theo Ahadome, senior analyst with InMedica remarked that, “Telehealth vendors and other stakeholders have an opportunity to help healthcare providers to develop an effective post-acute care strategy. For telehealth to succeed in reaching a wider audience, it needs to break out of being a niche market and become part of a comprehensive patient-care model. This is even more important in the post-acute care market where healthcare providers are more willing to pay for telehealth if it is part of a total post-acute care model. In such a situation, healthcare provider reimbursed or allocated pre-paid funds for patient outcomes irrespective of the chosen method. In some cases and for some diseases, telehealth will be part of that model.”

Of particular concern to the U.S. government is the rise chronic conditions such as heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and obesity in a rapidly aging population. Recent data from the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) indicate that 30 percent of adults 20 years of age and older (or 60 million people) are clinically obese. It is possible that such high rates of obesity could lead to a further explosion in cardiovascular diseases, back pain and diabetes prevalence, providing additional impetus for healthcare cost growth as a result.

Shane Walker, co-author of the recently released InMedica study titled Telehealth – An Analysis of Demand Dynamics – 2012 Edition further stated that, “Despite criticism of health care reform, it is clear that the long-term goals of the CMS are to move toward greater continuity of care while reducing costs through the avoidance of unnecessary duplication of services. Of course, this will require a period of transition, which the country is in currently. The beginning of this transition is the voluntary creation of accountable care organizations (ACOs), and the implementation of appropriate incentives to foster their adoption. Behavioral change can take time, as seen over the last fifty years with anti-smoking and Physical Fitness Council campaigns, but InMedica believes that telehealth is a tool that can significantly improve clinical outcomes while also achieving the ends of government initiatives. That said, it is clear from the provider and payer interviews conducted during this research that there is still much work to be done in advancing the state of telehealth in the U.S.”

The 2012 edition of InMedica’s telehealth report provides detailed analysis of the remote patient monitoring opportunity in a number of key countries worldwide. It is also the first of InMedica’s reports to include direct feedback from healthcare providers and payers on their telehealth challenges, requirements and decision making criteria. The report begins with a global overview of the market size and growth over the past two years; it then assesses whether market growth has matched industry expectations and identifies the varied drivers and inhibitors. The results of discussions with key stakeholders in the healthcare systems, particularly in the US, are used to guide InMedica’s projections of telehealth growth. Market share estimates for the leading suppliers of telehealth equipment and services are also included.

For more information please contact:

• Shane Walker, InMedia Associate Director and report co-author, 1-512-302-1977
• IHS Media Relations, +1-303-305-8021
• Theo Ahadome, InMedica Europe Press Manager, +44-1933-402-255
• Yvonne Zhang, IHS Asia Pacific, +86-21-6720-1823

The Telehealth: An Analysis of Demand Dynamics, 2012 Edition report includes:

• Supplier data backed with detailed insights from healthcare providers on telehealth success factors and decision making criteria.
• Segmentation of the telehealth market by type of payer, vertical and disease.
• Full assessment of telehealth business models to determine which models are likely to succeed in different countries.
• Installed base, market size and growth estimates for all key countries worldwide.
• Detailed opportunity analysis for telehealth worldwide and in key countries.
• Market share estimates for the leading suppliers of telehealth equipment and services.
• Qualitative analysis accompanies the statistical data to highlight key growth areas and major trends impacting the market.

About IHS (www.ihs.com)

IHS (NYSE: IHS) is the leading source of information, insight and analytics in critical areas that shape today’s business landscape. Businesses and governments in more than 165 countries around the globe rely on the comprehensive content, expert independent analysis and flexible delivery methods of IHS to make high-impact decisions and develop strategies with speed and confidence. IHS has been in business since 1959 and became a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange in 2005. Headquartered in Englewood, Colorado, USA, IHS is committed to sustainable, profitable growth and employs more than 6,000 people in 31 countries around the world.

About InMedica (www.in-medica.com)

InMedica is the medical technology research division of IMS Research, the leading provider of market research and consultancy to the global electronics industry. InMedica publish high quality, in-depth market research on key medical markets including Medical Imaging (such as ultrasound and x-ray equipment), Clinical Care Devices (such as patient monitors and infusion pumps), Consumer Medical Devices (such as blood-pressure monitors and heart-rate monitors), Healthcare IT (such as PACS and EMR) and Telehealth. We offer our clients global coverage of the medical electronics industry, as well as dedicated reports on high growth regions, such as China, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.

About IMS Research (www.imsresearch.com)

IMS Research, recently acquired by IHS (NYSE: IHS), is a leading supplier of market research and consultancy to over 2500 clients worldwide, including most of the world’s largest technology companies. Established in the UK in 1989, IMS Research now has dedicated analyst teams focused on the factory automation, automotive, communications, computer, consumer, display, financial & ID, LED & lighting, medical, power & energy, solar PV, smart grid and security markets. Currently publishing over 350 different syndicated report titles each year, these in-depth publications are used by major electronics and industrial companies to assess market trends, solve marketing problems, and improve the efficiency of their businesses.

My Advice as Editor of Modern Health Talk

If you buy any of these market research reports, make sure you get a chance to interview the authors personally to understand their assumptions, research process, and what shapes their conclusions. Make sure they aren’t just extrapolating trends but also include thoughtful discussion of market drivers, inhibitors and enablers, because you’ll need that insight to craft yourstrategies. 

Do the authors understand what’s driving telehealth, including the ageing populations and resulting increase in chronic illness, environmental pollution, the availability of nutritious foods, rising care costs, and physician shortages? What do they think of obstacles posed by legal, privacy and security issues, payment models, medical school curriculum and funding? What impact will regulators and the political process have, either as driver or inhibitor? And what will be the short- and long-term impact of broadband Internet access and the exponentially accelerating pace of tech innovation? Consider how quickly Moore’s Law is finding its’ way into healthcare (https://www.mhealthtalk.com/moores-law-and-the-future-of-healthcare/) and ask what will likely happen as medical devices keep getting cheaper, smaller, more accurate, and easier to use. 

Consider the impact of IBM Watson moving from physician assistance tool to advising and coaching consumers directly. How quickly will each of the medical functions done today by physicians in hospital & clinic settings safely move down-market to consumers at home? Won’t retail clinics and kiosks, and home doctor/nurse visits, just be stepping-stones along a path toward that eventuality? 

And finally, what phases will the market projections go through, and when? What levers might you have to make projections happen more quickly? And what should you watch out for that could make them happen more slowly?