Like most industries, healthcare has embraced the Internet as a powerful communications tool, with scores of websites providing information, reviews, and recommendations. The healthcare industry has also been one of the early adopters of social networking, a technology which seems tailor made for individuals seeking valuable peer perspectives on providers and available treatments, as well as advice and support. Various digital media have recently emerged as a means for individuals to measure their "life stream data," to track their progress toward a healthier lifestyle. Yet, ironically, while never before have consumers been so empowered with respect to their own care, the ability to pay for such care has never been so uncertain.
We believe an enormous opportunity exists in the application of digital media to healthcare finance. A project of this scale would require as much financial as technological innovation, but we need look no further than P2P lending for inspiration in this regard. People lending money to complete strangers would have been unthinkable ten years ago, and yet today we find individuals lending millions of dollars to fund everything from a new business venture, to home improvement, to a master's degree. Likewise, we are (finally) seeing the first indications of P2P-type technology being applied to corporate finance (Sprowtt).
The democratizing effect of "Health 2.0" technologies has been shown to contribute significantly to administrative cost reductions, and this is an excellent start. But is time to take the larger step of revolutionizing healthcare affordability. The surprising success of the P2P finance model should provide ample incentive for financial technology entrepreneurs with unconventional ideas. The winner of this race will be rewarded . . . handsomely.
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