Berg Insight, the world’s leading IoT market research provider, today released new findings on the mHealth market.

The number of remotely monitored patients reached 56.8 million in 2021 as the market acceptance continues to grow in several key verticals. This number includes all patients enrolled in mHealth care programs in which connected medical devices are used as a part of the care regimen. Connected medical devices used for various forms of personal health tracking are not included in this figure. Berg Insight estimates that the number of remotely monitored patients will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14.2 percent to reach 126.1 million by 2027.

The three main applications are monitoring of patients with sleep therapy devices, glucose level monitoring of patients with diabetes and monitoring of patients with implantable cardiac rhythm management (CRM) devices. The number of remotely monitored sleep therapy patients amounted to 27.5 million in 2021, driven by ResMed and Philips that together dominate the sleep therapy market. Glucose level monitoring has grown significantly in the last years and is now the second largest segment with 9.1 million connections at the end of the year. The growth is driven by the increased adoption of continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) systems from providers such as Abbott and Dexcom. The CRM market is led by companies such as Medtronic, Boston Scientific and Abbott that started to include connectivity in CRM solutions more than a decade ago. Other device categories include ECG, telehealth, medication compliance, blood pressure monitors and others.

The demand for home monitoring solutions has grown greatly in the last years. Healthcare systems around the world have undergone a transformation to adopt to value-based care – a care model that requires care solutions to be both cost-efficient and of high quality. Healthcare industry players have responded to this by developing data-driven solutions, such as self-engagement apps that rely on behavioural analytics to coach patients in how to manage their conditions.

“mHealth and home monitoring can help ease the burden of an already strained healthcare sector, as it eases the access to patient data and both increases the efficiency and improves the quality of care,” says Samuel Andersson, IoT Analyst at Berg Insight.

As regulations and reimbursement rates have been changed in favour or remote patient monitoring solutions, the growth is expected to continue. Several European countries have started to follow the US and either already introduced or plan to introduce reimbursement for remote patient monitoring in the near future.

Mr Andersson concludes:

“This trend has been going on for years, but the COVID-19 pandemic greatly accelerated the development, as it forced providers to adopt to remote patient monitoring and telehealth solutions. This helped overcome the institutional hesitancy and conservatism that previously were a major barrier for the adoption these solutions.”

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A new report from the IoT analyst firm Berg Insight has found that around 18.0 million people in North America were using connected care solutions at the end of 2018.

The ageing population and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases will be two of the greatest challenges in North America during this century. It is widely believed that connected care solutions can ease the burden on society by enabling more efficient delivery of care and allowing people to live independently for longer. Berg Insight’s definition of connected care includes medical alert systems, connected medication management solutions and remote patient monitoring (RPM) solutions.

Medical alert systems, also known as personal emergency response systems (PERS), comprises solutions that trigger an alarm when the user presses a button or when a passive sensor detects an accident. Connected medication management solutions comprise medication dispensers, pillboxes, pill bottles, vials caps, blister packages, injection devices, insulin pumps and inhalers that are connected to a monitoring platform to improve medication adherence.

RPM solutions comprise connected medical devices and monitoring services that are used for remote management of patients suffering from arrhythmia, asthma, chronic kidney disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, congestive heart failure, coronary artery disease, diabetes, hypertension or obstructive sleep apnea.

At the end of 2018, there were 18.0 million people that relied on connected care services in North America. RPM is the largest and most mature segment of the connected care market having a total of 16.1 million users at the end of 2018. The market for medical alert systems is considerably smaller with an estimated total of 3.1 million users, whereas the number of connected medication management users reached 900,000 at the end of 2018. There is an overlap between the market segments as medical alert users can also be equipped with a medication management solution or an RPM solution, and vice versa. The market is forecasted to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18.3 percent during the next six years to reach 49.4 million connected care users by 2024. Berg Insight expects that RPM will remain the largest segment of the connected care market with a forecasted 47.4 million users in 2024. The number of connected medication management users and medical alert system users will at the same time reach 3.2 million and 4.3 million respectively.

The market for RPM solutions involves a wide range of actors, from specialised equipment vendors to integrated mHealth solution providers. The leading RPM application has thus far been sleep therapy compliance monitoring. Patients that suffer from sleepdisordered breathing such as obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are typically prescribed an airflow generator. However, many patients find the devices unpleasant to use and poor compliance is common.

Payers increasingly require that patients comply with their treatment plans to be reimbursed for the device which has driven equipment vendors to connect the devices. The sleep therapy device segment is dominated by Philips and ResMed. The market for connected medication management solutions represents an interesting growth opportunity for companies from several markets. The use of connected insulin dosing systems has thus far gained most traction, but different connected solutions for pills and inhaled medication are increasingly adopted. In contrast, the market for medical alert systems is mature and key actors include Anelto, Essence Group, GreatCall, LogicMark, MobileHelp, Mytrex, Nortek and Phillips Lifeline

The North American market for connected care solutions is affected by several trends and developments that will have an impact on the competitive landscape in the following years. Changing demographics is driving the demand for home care, while technological developments and regulatory changes affect the competitive landscape for solution vendors. One of the major ongoing changes is the sunset of the landline telephone networks and cellular 3G networks, which forces equipment providers to upgrade their products. At the same time, the industry is becoming more patient-centric which calls for integrated systems and improved interoperability of connected care solutions. New companies are entering the connected care market and connected medication management solutions are today in the centre of attention for start-ups.

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According to a new market report from Berg Insight, revenues for remote patient monitoring (RPM) solutions reached € 17.5 billion in 2018.

This includes revenues from medical monitoring devices, mHealth connectivity solutions, care delivery platforms and mHealth care programs.

RPM revenues are expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 21.4 percent until 2023, reaching € 46.1 billion at the end of the forecast period. Most of the revenues come from the sales of connected medical devices. New care delivery platforms shows the highest growth rate, with an expected CAGR of 53.1 percent during the forecast period. The new care models enabled by these technologies are often consistent with patients’ preferences of living more healthy, active and independent lives.

Healthcare systems around the world are currently undergoing a major transformation to adopt value-based care ¬– a care model that requires care solutions to be both cost-efficient and of high-quality. Healthcare industry players are responding to this by developing data-driven solutions to optimise healthcare. One example is the use of self-engagement apps that rely on behavioural analytics to coach patients in how to manage their conditions. This can include reminders to take medication, recommendations to handle certain symptoms and real-time adjustments of the treatment plan to address changes in the patient’s condition. Berg Insight believes that patient engagement apps are likely to become a standard practice in many chronic disease management programmes and that this will spur the adoption of mHealth solutions.

Consumer-oriented mHealth devices of medical-grade standards are at the same time gaining traction on the market. During the last years, millions of consumers have connected medical monitoring devices via their smartphones to cloud platforms.

Sebastian Hellström, IoT analyst at Berg Insight, says:
“Payers and healthcare providers can take advantage of this trend, as consumers that already have started to use connected medical devices more easily can be onboarded onto new mHealth care programs.”

Similarly, medical researchers will have the possibility to collect data in volumes that have never been seen before. However, gaining access to patients’ data may also become more complicated than before. New regulations such as the General Data Protection Regulation give individuals more control over their personal data.

Mr. Hellström continues:

“Previously, patients have barely been able to access their own health records. This is about to change and in a few years’ time it will become much easier for patients to not only view their data, but also suggest changes to it and even decide whom to share it with.”

Healthcare actors will have to make it attractive for patients to share their data. Those who do, may get access to rich information including everything from daily activity habits to ECG, blood pressure and blood sugar readings.

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Berg Insight,today released new findings on the mHealth market. The number of remotely monitored patients grew by 41 percent to 16.5 million in 2017 as the market acceptance continues to grow in several key verticals.

This number includes all patients enrolled in mHealth care programs in which connected medical devices are used as a part of the care regimen. Connected medical devices used for various forms of personal health tracking are not included in this figure. Berg Insight estimates that the number of remotely monitored patients will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 31.0 percent to reach 83.4 million by 2023.

The two main applications are monitoring of patients with sleep therapy devices and monitoring of patients with implantable cardiac rhythm management (CRM) devices. These two segments accounted for 82 percent of all connected home medical monitoring systems in 2017. The number of remotely monitored sleep therapy patients grew by 37 percent in 2017, mainly driven by Philips and ResMed that together dominate the sleep therapy market. The CRM market is led by companies such as Medtronic, Boston Scientific and Abbott that started to include connectivity in CRM solutions more than a decade ago. Telehealth is the third largest segment with 0.8 million connections at the end of the year. Leading telehealth hub vendors include Tunstall Healthcare, Resideo (Honeywell), Medtronic, Philips and Qualcomm Life. Other device categories – including ECG, glucose level, medication compliance, blood pressure monitors and others – accounted for just over two million connections.

Sebastian Hellström, IoT Analyst at Berg Insight, says:

“The most promising segment is medication compliance, which we expect will become the second most connected segment in the next five years.”

More than 60 percent of all connected medical monitoring devices rely on cellular connectivity today and has become the de-facto standard for most types of connected home medical monitoring devices. The number of mHealth devices with integrated cellular connectivity increased from 7.1 million in 2016 to 10.7 million in 2017. The use of BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) connectivity will increase the most during the next six years, with a forecasted CAGR of 48.2 percent.

“BYOD involves low cost and the technology is mostly adopted in patient-centric therapeutic areas such as diabetes and asthma that have younger patient demographics compared to many other chronic diseases. Many of these patients prefer to use their own smartphone as the interface instead of carrying around a dedicated device for remote monitoring”, concluded Mr. Hellström.

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According to a new research report from the IoT analyst firm Berg Insight, the upcoming implementation of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in 2018 will cause challenges for companies in the telecare industry.

Telecare and telehealth apps and devices are potentially generating huge amounts of data that could be used for various purposes. Today, data is increasingly more used to help patients without the need of the patient’s own active involvement. This includes various kinds of health data as well as user location and movement data which could be used to identify abnormalities. If a user does things differently, for example not leaving or going to the bed as usual, a notification can be sent to relatives or care givers.

Legislative authorities in the EU are developing and designing legal frameworks that should be in line with the new data driven world of mobile health. As part of this, the European Commission will in 2018 implement a General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) that aims to harmonise data protection rules in the EU, ensuring legal certainty for businesses and increasing trust on eHealth services with a consistent high level of protection of individuals. The GDPR aims primarily to give control back to citizens and residents over their personal data and to simplify the regulatory environment for international businesses by unifying the regulation within the EU. When the GDPR takes effect, it will replace the data protection directive and it becomes enforceable from May 25 next year after a two-year transition period. It does not require national governments to pass any enabling legislation and will be directly binding and applicable.

Anders Frick, Senior Analyst, Berg Insight says:
“While the future is data driven, end-users do care more and more about integrity aspects. The GDPR aims to increase privacy for the end-user which is a step in the right direction. The regulation by default actually prohibits processing of health data unless explicit consent has been given. At the same time, this will cause challenges for those telecare and telehealth solution providers that are not proactively working on their preparations.”

“If the solution providers are not enough prepared for handling, processing and storing sensitive data in accordance to GDPR, they could risk heavy fines if not fulfilling the requirements.”

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Gemalto announces the use of its IoT connectivity technology in OnKöl’s mHealth solution.

Enabled by Gemalto’s wireless module, the smart hub connects the elderly and those with special needs to their family and caregivers, allowing them to live in their own home safely, independently and comfortably.

With the population of older individuals due to double in size by 2030¹ and the ratio of potential caregivers to decrease by over fifty percent², new technology must rise to meet the need for quality care. However, adoption rates amongst elderly patients have been low as current mHealth options are often too complicated.

Designed for stylish simplicity, the award-winning OnKöl hub removes barriers to technology adoption and encourages engagement without intimidation. Straight out of the box, it can notify family members, caregivers, and even medical professionals of everything from vital signs to medication reminders to emergency response situations.

Equipped with Gemalto’s M2M module, the above remote patient monitoring services are securely managed over-the-air to simplify deployment, personalization and software updates. The patient can easily connect health and home monitoring devices, like blood pressure cuffs, heart-monitors, and smoke detectors, and Gemalto’s module encrypts and sends the gathered information to the OnKöl platform where it is delivered to caregivers and can even be logged into the patients’ electronic medical records.

Executive Comments:

Erich Jacobs, CEO, OnKöl:
“Gemalto’s reputation, wide variety of high quality, industrial-grade modules and breadth of mHealth experience convinced us that their technology was the best fit for our product. It allowed us to deliver a hub that is effortless to set up, use, and scale to support OnKöl business growth in the future.”

Rodrigo Serna, SVP Mobile and IoT Services, Americas, Gemalto:

“We were able to work with OnKöl to create an innovative product that has not yet been seen in the market and is customized to its end user’s specific needs. By enabling simple and reliable communication, Gemalto and OnKöl are helping older individuals to maintain their independence and create peace of mind for their caregivers.”

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Revenues for remote patient monitoring (RPM) solutions reached € 7.5 billion in 2016, according to a new study released by Berg Insight.

This includes revenues from medical monitoring devices, mHealth connectivity solutions, care delivery platforms and mHealth care programs.

RPM revenues are expected to grow at a CAGR of 33.8 percent between 2016 and 2021, reaching € 32.4 billion at the end of the forecast period. Savings attributable to payers and care providers will by far exceed this amount as connected care solutions can allow better health outcomes to be achieved more cost efficiently. The new care models enabled by these technologies are often consistent with patients’ preferences of living more healthy, active and independent lives.

The healthcare industry is advancing towards an age where connected healthcare solutions will be part of standard care practices.
Anders Frick, Senior Analyst at Berg Insight, says:

“All health related devices that can be connected will be connected and patient data management therefore becomes increasingly important.”

He describes how the line between medical devices and health gadgets becomes blurred and traditional as well as startup companies try to position themselves as important players in the ecosystem for mHealth data. National PHR systems, device manufacturing companies, independent app producers and tech giants such as Google, Apple and Microsoft are some of the stakeholders. Another major trend is the consumerization of medical-grade mHealth devices and apps.

During 2016 hundreds of thousands of consumers have connected medical monitoring devices via their smartphones to cloud platforms. This marks a substantial shift that will open up new opportunities in the remote patient monitoring market in the coming years.

“Payers and healthcare providers will have opportunities to take advantage of this trend, as consumers that already have started to use connected medical devices more easily can be onboarded onto new mHealth care programs”, concludes Mr Frick.

The new mHealth study from Berg Insight also investigates the connected AED market. An automated external defibrillator (AED) is a portable electronic device that automatically diagnoses and corrects life-threatening heart problems in a patient. Yearly shipments of AEDs are around 500,000 units globally. Several vendors recently started to offer AEDs featuring built-in connectivity whereas others are only in the planning stage to add connectivity. Berg Insight estimates that about 10 percent of all AEDs sold this year will be connected, a percentage that will increase to 50 percent by 2021.

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Berg Insight today released new findings about the mHealth market.

The number of remotely monitored patients grew by 44 percent to 7.1 million in 2016 as the market entered a growth phase fuelled by rising market acceptance in several key verticals.

This number includes all patients enrolled in mHealth care programs in which connected medical devices are used as a part of the care regimen. Connected medical devices used for various forms of personal health tracking are not included in this figure. Berg Insight estimates that the number of remotely monitored patients will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 47.9 percent to reach 50.2 million by 2021.

The two main applications are monitoring of patients with sleep therapy devices and monitoring of patients with implantable cardiac rhythm management (CRM) devices. These two verticals accounted for 80 percent of all connected home medical monitoring systems in 2016.

Anders Frick, Senior Analyst at Berg Insight, says:

“The number of remotely monitored sleep therapy patients grew by 70 percent in 2016, mainly driven by Resmed that has made connected healthcare a cornerstone of its strategy.”

Other leading vendors in this segment are Philips Respironics and SRETT. The CRM market is led by companies such as Medtronic, Boston Scientific and St. Jude Medical (now Abbott) that included connectivity in CRM solutions more than a decade ago. Telehealth is the third largest segment with 0.50 million connections at the end of the year. Leading telehealth hub vendors include Tunstall Healthcare, Honeywell, Cardiocom, Philips and Qualcomm Life. All other device categories – including ECG, g lucose level, medication adherence and others – stood for less than one million connections together.

Cellular connectivity has already replaced PSTN and LAN as the de-facto standard communication technology for most types of connected home medical monitoring devices. The number of mHealth devices with integrated cellular connectivity increased from 3.0 million in 2015 to 4.9 million in 2016. The use of BYOD connectivity will increase the most during the next five years, with a forecasted CAGR of 109 percent. BYOD involves low costs, but cannot be used to reliably connect every patient. The technology will be most useful for patient-centric engagement programs in therapeutic areas such as diabetes and asthma that have younger patient demographics compared to many other chronic diseases. In fact, many of these patients will prefer to use their own smartphone as the interface instead of carrying around a dedicated device for remote monitoring.

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A study published in ‘JMIR mHealth and uHealth’ journal examined the use of mHealth apps and e-tools.

In this research, efficacy of mHealth apps was examined in order to improve use of medication and overall patient conditions in diabetic patients. The research team was led by Linda Wilhelmina Maria van Kerkhof, PhD. Researchers noted down 116 most frequently downloaded apps for glucose monitoring. In the second stage, they conducted an online survey to find out answers for why people use these apps, their efficacy & health benefits, and potential risks. Half of them responded that they used apps for educational purposes, while 37 percent of them reported that they used it for side effect monitoring and treatment adherence purposes.

Research team outlined that the availability of the apps and e-tools has increased enormously in the past few years. Patients and healthcare professionals have little idea about reliable e-tools after considering this huge availability of apps and lack of regulations. Patients are consulting to their acquaintances before using any app. While beginning new treatment, patients prefer apps used by their confidants to determine reliability of apps. mHealth apps are effective as it improves overall health and boosts self-reliance of patients. The efficacy of app depends upon the willingness of patients to perform mentioned tasks in the app.

“A recent study indicates that the effectiveness of a diabetes management app to “improve health” is largely dependent on patient willingness to use the app and satisfaction with the app, indicating the need to include these aspects in studies investigating benefits and effectiveness of e-tools,” the research team said. “This is in line with our study, which shows that of the people willing to use the app and doing so, many feel that the app(s) improve their health.”

Some of the apps are useful as they provide health benefits, while some are not as effective and reliable. These apps are helpful in educating patients but involve low level of engagement, while some apps involve active patient engagement and help patients in improving rapidly. The research team suggest that mHealth apps need better regulation and developers need to comply with those regulations to provide reliable and effective care.

Analysts studying the industry have revealed thorough information regarding changing market dynamics in research reports. Recently, Big Market Research has added a report titled, “Global mHealth Market (Devices, Services, Application, Stakeholders and Geography).” As per the report, the world mHealth market is valued at $10.5 billion in 2014 and expected to grow at a CAGR of 33.5% from 2015 to 2020.

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Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced semiconductor technology, today announced that it is addressing the growing trend of quantified health with an all-in-one advanced system logic chip for the health-oriented wearables market, the Bio-Processor.

The Samsung Bio-Processor, now in mass production, is specifically designed to allow accelerated development of innovative wearable products for consumers who are increasingly monitoring their health and fitness on a daily basis.

“With improvements in smart, fitness devices and an increase in consumer health consciousness, more and more people are looking for ways to monitor various personal bio-data, or fitness data, to constantly manage their health” said Ben K. Hur, Vice President of marketing, System LSI business at Samsung Electronics.

“Samsung’s Bio-Processor, which can process five different biometric signals, is the most versatile health and fitness monitoring chip available on the market today and is expected to open up many new health-based service options for our customers.”

Samsung Bio-Processor: Small in size; Big on Versatility

Samsung’s Bio-Processor is the industry’s first all-in-one health solution chip. By integrating not only Analog Front Ends (AFE), but also microcontroller unit (MCU), power management integrated circuit (PMIC), digital signal processor (DSP), and eFlash memory, it is able to process the bio-signals it measures without the need of external processing parts. Even with its integrated design, the Bio-Processor is particularly innovative thanks to its incredibly small size. When compared to the total area of the discrete parts, the Bio-Processor is only about one fourth of the total combined size, which is ideal for small wearable devices, offering a bounty of options when designing new devices.

While heart rate monitoring alone may have been compelling in the past, the ability to measure a variety of fitness data is expected in today’s wearable products. To meet such demands, Samsung has designed its Bio-Processor to integrate five AFEs including bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), photoplethysmogram (PPG), electrocardiogram (ECG), skin temperature, and galvanic skin response (GSR) into a single chip solution that measures body fat, and skeletal muscle mass, heart rate, heart rhythm, skin temperature and stress level, respectively. In addition, combinations of these fitness inputs can be considered for a variety of new use cases.

To speed product development and better understand Samsung’s new Bio-Processor, several wearable reference platforms are now available to demonstrate various uses cases. For example, wrist band, board and patch type reference devices exhibit the Bio-Processor’s potential by demonstrating its ability to measure multiple fitness variables on an extremely small device.

Samsung Bio-Processor is currently in mass production and will be available in fitness/health devices within the first half of 2016.

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Walgreens, the US largest drugstore chain, in partnership with MDLIVE, has recently announced an expansion of the Walgreens mobile app, which will enable offering MDLive’s telehealth services to users in 25 states in US, this includes launching of an updated mhealth experience integrated with the app, providing high end services.

The above expansion will enable patients in those states to have access to telehealth services via Walgreens mobile app. Also, one no longer needs to install and launch the MDLIVE app separately in order to take the advantage of the session.

Furthermore, the company announced the launch of the Walgreens Connect app. This enables Walgreens Balance Rewards members to own a Well at Walgreens connected premium brands for blood glucose monitoring for taking measurements on a daily basis. The app offers definitive guide to the users to select the device to pair, connect to the device, sync data and earn Balance Rewards points in just three steps. The data is transmitted to the cloud via the 2net Platform and 2net Mobile solutions from Qualcomm Life.

According to Adam Pellegrini, Walgreens, VP, digital health division:

“We have seen that telehealth solutions play an important role in helping to improve patient outcomes, and we will continue to work to evolve our offerings to ensure our patients can choose what’s most convenient for them whether that’s live doctor consultations, digitally chatting with a pharmacist or visiting a Healthcare Clinic.”

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A new report* by Allied Market Research stated that the global mHealth market was valued at $10.5 billion in 2014 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 33.5% during 2015-2020.

Blood pressure monitors hold the largest share in the global mHealth device market followed by blood glucose monitors and cardiac monitors. Geographically, North America will continue to retain its leading position in the overall mHealth market throughout the analysis period.

Mobile health provides health service and information through mobile communication devices to address the health priorities and concerns. The advanced mobile and wireless technologies have transformed the face of healthcare services across the globe and are rendering the growth of mHealth market. Moreover, the continued growth in coverage of mobile cellular networks, rapid advances in mobile technologies & applications, increasing lifestyle diseases and growing awareness among patient population in emerging economies, are some of the key factors fostering the growth of global mHealth market. On contrary, the lower accuracy of devices, technology infancy in middle and lower income economies, weak reimbursement coverage, uncertainty in government regulations in certain regions, and low adoption among ageing population is hampering the market growth to certain extent.

The major chunk of mHealth devices market – i.e. ~71% – is collectively commanded by BP monitors, blood glucose monitors and cardiac monitors. The large share of these monitors can be attributed to increased affordability of mobile compatible devices, integration of innovative technologies in monitoring devices and the increasing lifestyle disease such as diabetes, stroke, COPD, ischemic heart to name a few. Within mHealth services, diagnostic, monitoring and treatment services collectively hold about 74% of the market. The rapid growth of mHealth services market is attributed to rising government initiatives, increasing mHealth awareness programs in underdeveloped regions etc.

Key finding of the study:

• Blood glucose meters is projected to be the fastest growing segment in global mHealth devices market registering a CAGR of 41% during the forecast period
• United States continues to be the leading market in the North America mHealth market throughout the forecast period
• Asia-Pacific is projected to be the fastest growing mHealth market registering a CAGR of 35.9% during 2015-2020
• United Kingdom, France and Germany collectively accounts to 45% share in the Europe mHealth device market in 2014
• Cardiovascular and diabetes mHelath application market remains the lucrative market segment for manufacturers

Geographically, North America and Europe constitute the two largest markets for mHealth and collectively accounted for 67% of the market revenue in 2014. They are expected to continue its hold on the global market throughout the forecast period.

Early adoption of innovative technology, large patient population and high capacity to pay for services are some of the key factors responsible for the growth of mHealth market in these regions. However, the market outlook across developing economies is looking favorable and strong owing to the increasing awareness of chronic diseases, favorable government regulations and increased healthcare expenditure.

Philips healthcare, Bayer Healthcare and Sanofi are some of the key companies enjoying a strong foothold in global mHealth market, especially in Asian countries. Key players profiled in this report include – Philips healthcare, Omron HealthCare Inc., Bayer Healthcare, LifeWatch, Cardionet Inc., Masimo Corporation, Sanofi, Boston Scientific, AT&T Inc., and Johnson & Johnson.

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iPhone, more like IoTPhone am I right? (Ok I’ll stop now…)

Yesterday (09/03/15) Apple held it’s first media event of the new year; “Spring Forward” was heavily focused on Apple’s push into the wearable gadgets space – The Apple Watch. We also got some MacBook and iOS news but the most interesting news from an IoT perspective was the unveiling of ResearchKit a macro IoT information gathering application that works with Apple’s HealthKit.

Unveiled last year HealthKit gives developers opportunities to integrate hardware and application data with Apples Health app, essentially turning the iPhone into a portable mHeatlh hub. HealthKit is already integrated with a number of wearables; connected scales, sleep monitoring devices and even a stationary bike.

When HealthKit was launched last year, I was extremely bullish that it would change the face of the connected health landscape and I still feel the potential is there but aside from some exciting pilots we haven’t seen that “Killer App” yet. We’re still seeing a lot of companies relying on a stand-alone hub or internal modem to transmit data to doctors and medical centers. I’m personally not sure if this is still the preferred method because of development and design cycles or if companies are still dubious about Apple intercepting private health data.

ResearchKit aims to take the micro focus of single patient monitoring and expand it exponentially by allowing the 700+ million iPhones out there in the wild to act as mobile medical research devices.

Having worked with several companies developing connected health devices I can tell you that some of the biggest hurdles involve finding subjects for clinical trials for a number of reasons; time, geography, etc. By having people opt-in with their existing connected devices, medical research centers can get a cross section of users across different, social & environmental subsections.

If it proves successful ResearchKit can seriously disrupt the medical research industry in a way that we’ve never before seen, organizations and charities that focus on research can reduce the overheads associated with organization and accommodation of trials by complementing their existing research methodologies with ResearchKit data, hopefully helping them pick up patterns and valuable data much quicker.

What I like about ResearchKit is how it presents a solid use case for collaboration and sharing of data in the M2M/IoT space. By making their policy completely clear that this is an interactive, opt-in application where Apple has no access to your private health information, Apple make a compelling argument for using their hardware and platform as a hub for all kinds of connected health work.

Right now we’re seeing connected health devices being used either for remote monitoring, response or insurance purposes, all necessary applications. With ResearchKit the dynamic shifts from a maintenance and reactive model to something much more proactive with long-term benefits to not only the patient but everyone suffering from their condition.

In a previous blog I wrote about the lack of a compelling argument for a lot of wearables (Full Post), but if information collected about your lifestyle and health routine could help others without you needing to do anything apart from opt-in wouldn’t you do it?

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Empowering United States Seniors to be Connected to Emergency Care On-the-Go.

AT&T and Royal Philips today announced that AT&T is the connectivity provider for Philips GoSafe, Philips’ leading mobile medical alert service.
GoSafe was designed to help provide peace of mind to seniors at home or on the go, giving them the freedom to live active lives with the confidence that they can get help if and when they need it. The AT&T network helps power GoSafe and connects seniors with Philips’ 24/7, U.S-based emergency call response center, which serves more seniors than any other medical alert service.

Featuring the power of six location technologies, GoSafe helps give seniors the confidence to get up and go while being protected. Philips is the only mobile personal emergency response system (mPERS) to utilize this advanced locating approach, which allows call center associates to locate seniors in need of assistance even in areas where GPS may not be available, such as indoors or in a parking garage.

“People of any age want the freedom to come and go. The Philips GoSafe system was designed to give them an easy-to-use mobile medical alert system with robust safety and security capabilities,” said Chris Penrose, senior vice president, Internet of Things Organization, AT&T Mobility.
“When medical and health devices are wirelessly connected, network reliability is a necessity. We provide that vital link—the nation’s most reliable network. We’re excited to see where this collaboration goes.”

Philips GoSafe

“Our mission is to serve the safety, health and connectedness needs of seniors globally and make the aging experience better for seniors, caregivers and clinicians. GoSafe, with its advanced fall detection and location capabilities, is a key step forward as it provides seniors a better experience in staying safe while on the go.”

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vívofit Activity Tracker Integrated with Medidata Clinical Cloud to Enable Enhanced Patient Engagement, Data Quality and Operational Efficiencies in Clinical Trials.

Medidata, the leading global provider of cloud-based solutions for clinical research in life sciences, today announced a strategic collaboration with Garmin International Inc., a unit of Garmin Ltd. By integrating Garmin’s vívofit activity tracker with the Medidata Clinical Cloud®, Medidata is enabling its life sciences customers to make use of mobile health (mHealth) devices with the potential to enhance patient engagement, data quality and operational efficiencies in clinical trials.

Designed to be worn on a person’s wrist 24/7, Garmin’s vívofit measures steps taken, distance, calories burned and hours slept. The water-resistant device—which displays fitness data through its always-on LCD display—is being used by Medidata to capture patient data in clinical trials. The company selected the vívofit because of the ease of use provided by its year-long battery life, which can improve the convenience and speed associated with capturing direct-from-patient data and, as such, has the potential to increase compliance among study participants in a clinical trial setting.

“We’re thrilled to be working with Garmin, a company that shares our passion for innovation and our commitment to enhancing people’s health and well being,” said Glen de Vries, Medidata’s president.

“Integrating the vívofit with the Medidata platform is part of our ongoing efforts to unify mHealth devices with cloud-based technologies in a clinical trial setting. We believe these efforts will result in better data, enhanced patient experiences and more efficient trials.”

Medidata has built cloud-based infrastructure that enables life sciences companies to explore the use of mHealth technologies in clinical research. This infrastructure gathers data from devices worn by patients and integrates it with other traditional clinical data, including labs, vital signs, medical history and adverse events. In doing so, the infrastructure provides life sciences companies with the ability to conduct sophisticated analysis on trial performance. Medidata is currently working with top life sciences organizations to explore the feasibility of using the vívofit in clinical trials. The data is pulled from the Garmin activity tracker in 15-minute increments and then analyzed to evaluate its connection with traditional clinical measures and determine whether it can provide better insight into patient health status or response to therapy.

“At Garmin, our mission is to develop innovative technology that promotes healthy and active lifestyles,” said Allison Swelin, Strategic Partnership Development Manager at Garmin International. “We’re excited to see Medidata use the vívofit in their pursuit to help the global life sciences industry find better, easier ways to collect data directly from patients.”

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According to a new research report from the analyst firm Berg Insight, around 4.7 million people in Europe were using connected care solutions at the end of 2013.

The figure refers to users of traditional telecare, next-generation telecare and telehealth solutions in the EU28+2 countries. Until 2019, Berg Insight forecasts that the number of connected care users will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.2 percent to reach 13.7 million. Traditional telecare is currently the largest and most mature of the three market segments. The next-generation telecare and telehealth market segments are in a more nascent stage but are entering a strong growth phase that is expected to last for many years to come.

The European connected care industry is facing major changes that will reshape the competitive environment for solution vendors and service providers during the coming years. One of the main developments is the digitalization of telephone networks that already has started in several countries. Massive replacements of telecare equipment will be needed due to that analogue devices no longer function reliably when the PSTN infrastructure is modernized. At the same time, the market is opening up to new types of solutions that can advance the delivery of care to the next level. This includes next-generation telecare systems that support functionalities such as remote visits and video communication.

Lars Kurkinen, Senior Analyst, Berg Insight, said:

“There is a strong need for solutions that enable social care and healthcare services to be delivered more cost-efficiently without compromising the quality of care.”

He adds that this need will only grow stronger in the future as the European population structure ages and the prevalence of chronic diseases increases.

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Berg Insight estimates that revenues for remote patient monitoring (RPM) solutions reached € 4.3 billion in 2013, including revenues from medical monitoring devices, mHealth connectivity solutions, care delivery software platforms and monitoring services.

RPM revenues are expected to grow at a CAGR of 35.0 percent between 2013 and 2018, reaching € 19.4 billion at the end of the forecast period. Savings attributable to payers and care providers will by far exceed this amount as connected care solutions can allow better health outcomes to be achieved more cost efficiently. The new care models enabled by these technologies are furthermore often consistent with patients’ preferences of living more healthy, active and independent lives.

While the healthcare industry is advancing towards an age where connected care solutions will be part of standard practices, this progress is still far from uniform.
Lars Kurkinen, Senior Analyst, Berg Insight, said:

“The growth in the remote patient monitoring market is today centred on very specific market verticals and regions. Most of the market growth in the sleep therapy segment has for instance occurred in the US and France, where frequent compliance audits are becoming more common.”

He adds that the telehealth market benefits from local and regional project financing in several European countries, whereas remotely monitored medication dispensers gain traction among home care providers in the Benelux and Nordic countries in particular. In addition to this, the first pharmaceutical companies have recently initiated rollouts of connected adherence monitoring solutions that are bundled together with specific drugs.

“Another high-level development that will have a major impact on the use of connected care solutions in several countries during the coming years is the shift from fee-for-service reimbursement systems to pay-for-performance structures that emphasize cost-effective delivery of quality care”, adds Mr Kurkinen.

In the US, one example of this development is the large number of RFPs for telehealth solutions that are being issued due to the hospital readmission reduction programs.

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The rumor-mill has indeed been on hyperactivity in the last couple of months in anticipation of what Apple is cooking up as competitor companies such as Samsung launched products in wearable tech and its latest flagship which is the Samsung Galaxy S5. Finally, Apple kicked off Worldwide Developers Conference by confirming some of the speculations that has been going around starting with its announcement ahead of the conference, to acquire the headphone and music streaming company Beats Electronics for $3 billion. During the conference Apple also revealed its new mobile operating system, iOS 8 which will make it easier for you to share and search. This new operating system, which will be made available for download in the fall of this year, also includes Healthkit, a hub for storing and sorting health information such as vital signs, keep track of your diet and sleeping habits. Healthkit can be used with other third party applications such as those from Nike and Mayo Clinic to help you and healthcare providers alike to keep tab of your health much easier. It also allows you to choose which application will have access to your health information to protect your privacy.

Apple also announced its much-anticipated smart home technology offer called HomeKit, quite an expected move for Apple into the Internet of Things. HomeKit allows you to take control of selected gadgets and appliances at home such as lighting, door locks and thermostats. According to Craig Federighi, Senior VP Software Engineering, Apple worked with leaders in home automation devices and has come up with a kit that has a common network protocol and secure pairing to ensure that only your iPhone can access your door locks. In addition to being able to unlock doors, with HomeKit you can control individual devices in your home and group these devices, change them into scenes, and with Siri integration you can command these devices to do specific tasks following certain control settings using your iPhone.

Another highlight of the conference is the new Mac operating system Yosemite, and iOS software getting new designs and better ways of exchanging files. Mac and iOS are two identifiably separate systems however, Apple CEO Time Cook says that these systems have been engineered to work seamlessly. Mac and iPhone can now use AirDrop to exchange files directly. A new handoff feature is also introduced, which allows effortless switching of devices. This feature also allows Mac to receive caller identification on an incoming phone call on your iPhone and allows you to use your Mac as speaker.

One major difference in this year’s Worldwide Developers Conference is the lack of new product announcement. Typically Apple announces new iPhones around September and iPad products after that. Speculations still abound as to what comes next of the very popular smartphone. Rumors had it that the next iPhone will have 4.7 and 5.5 inch screens as reported by the South China Morning Post, but these remained mere speculations as of this point.

Nonetheless, analysts and developers remain optimistic that these software advances made by Apple will catapult the industry for more life-changing innovations.

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Smart pill dispenser with wireless connectivity improves well-being, independence and peace of mind for patients, relatives and caregivers.

Gemalto, the world leader in digital security, announces its Cinterion® M2M technology is providing wireless cellular connectivity for the next-generation of pill dispensers. Developed by MedMinder and wirelessly enabled by Gemalto, the advanced mHealth device for convenient patient use tracks medication intake, sends medical alerts, orders refills and improves prescription compliance. The new, innovative dispenser enhances communication between patients and caregivers, improving the overall well-being, independence and peace of mind for patients.

MedMinder’s smart pill dispensers, equipped with Gemalto’s advanced M2M module, monitor medication usage and send data from the pill box over wireless networks to a central server. Physicians and caregivers can log on to MedMinder’s secure web interface to observe medication adherence and manage changes when necessary. Gemalto’s 20 years’ experience in security combined with its M2M technology ensures this personal information is accessed only by authorized individuals. Continued success of the mHealth industry relies on secure data protection, in which Gemalto is playing a key role.

The solution provides an audio alarm to alert the patient when medication should be taken. Caregivers also receive alerts if scheduled doses are missed giving caregivers the ability to offer real-time support for an enhanced level of medical care. The patient can chose their preferred method of communication as the connectivity enables the pill dispenser to send reminders via text message, email or a phone call. In addition, MedMinder Medication Dispenser has Medical Alert embedded for two way voice channel with the patient’s monitoring center in case of an emergency.

Eran Shavelsky, CEO of MedMinder, said:

“The Gemalto M2M solution allows for secure connectivity that provides 24/7 automated communication between the pill box, patient, doctor and medical alert monitoring center depending on the urgency of the situation.”

“The technology also offers flexibility and cost-effectiveness for our devices with the option to add new features and expand capabilities in the future without having to redesign the device.”

“The Gemalto Cinterion PHS8 module is the slimmest M2M module on the market, and ideally suited to MedMinder’s compact solution,” said Paul Kobos, Head of M2M Sales for Gemalto North America.

“With an aging population and growing need for chronic care management, Gemalto M2M technology truly impacts patients’ day-to-day care while protecting data and can be seamlessly integrated into healthcare IT systems.”

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A new report from Machina Research examines the impact that M2M will have on the healthcare sector: the likely adoption, the impact on clinical outcomes, and the implications for the sector.

The global healthcare sector is increasingly turning to machine-to-machine (M2M) technology and platforms to add improved cost efficiency, increase adherence to medical regimens and enhance medical outcomes. As a result of soaring medical costs particularly in the US and other markets, medical facilities are expanding the role of connected devices and sensors in care delivery to offer greater flexibility of chronic disease treatment, reach underserved populations and spark better patient engagement with their healthcare services.

Andy Castonguay, Principal Analyst with Machina Research and author of the new Sector Report: Machine-to-Machine (M2M) Communications in Healthcare 2013-23, remarked:

“In a country like the United States, with healthcare spending nearing 20% of national GDP, M2M technology may well provide the single most promising approach to expanding healthcare services in a cost effective manner.”

“While the cost dynamics of healthcare are a key factor driving innovation in the field, connected health devices and applications are also proving to be a key element in improving patient engagement and health.”

Despite the complexities of the healthcare privacy/security regulations, payment/reimbursement frameworks and medical organizations’ structures, advances in connected medical devices and services offer substantial promise for organizations looking to expand services, reduce costs and improve medical outcomes.

As a result of notable uptake of clinical remote monitoring, connected medical environments, worried well personal health monitoring and improved assisted living monitoring Machina Research forecasts that the installed base of M2M connected devices within the health sector will approach 847 million by 2023.

As illustrated in the chart below, North America will be the largest region for the duration of the forecast reaching 386 million connections by 2023, followed by Europe and Developed Asia Pacific. With this significant growth of connected devices and sensors, the M2M healthcare industry will generate USD90.9 billion in total revenues by 2023, outlined in the figure below, increasing at a CAGR of 17.2% from 2013.

Figure: Global healthcare M2M connections by region, 2013-2023 [Machina Research, 2014]

Source: Machina Research

The report is available as part of the Machina Research Advisory Service.

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Vodafone and AstraZeneca announced today a global partnership to use mobile health (mHealth) services to improve health outcomes for patients with cardiovascular conditions.

The collaboration will create new mobile and internet-based services to support patients through their treatment journey, improving medication adherence and giving patients confidence to manage their condition more effectively.

Vodafone will provide the technology, infrastructure and expertise for these services, as well as the ability to capture data from a variety of sources to improve overall engagement between patients and their Health Care Professionals (HCPs).

HCPs will be able to give patients the option to use these mHealth services, as an integral part of the patient care process, empowering them to manage their conditions as part of their daily routine. Patients will have access to educational material – personalised for their needs – and will benefit from coaching and treatment support to help manage their medication and lifestyle changes, and track their treatment progress.

The project will be led by the Intelligent Pharmaceutical Group within AstraZeneca, part of Global Medicines Development, working in close collaboration with the in-country marketing teams. Services will be designed to work across geographies, with the ability to adapt to local variations in regulations and patient care. Astra Zeneca has selected Vodafone in light of Vodafone’s experience in delivering – and ability to scale – mHealth services.

Vodafone Director for Machine to Machine, Erik Brenneis, said:

“Bringing together the best in connectivity with the best in treatment and education will create powerful and compelling outcomes for patients.”

“AstraZeneca is a global leader in the mHealth field and we are delighted to work with them to develop these innovative services.”

Andy Jones VP Pharmaceutical Innovation at AstraZeneca commented:
“It is really exciting to see the progress being made in this area. This work is an excellent example of collaboration between AstraZeneca and Vodafone. Together we believe we are delivering something that will bring real benefit to patients in this important therapeutic area.”

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Gemalto, the world leader in digital security, announces its Cinterion® M2M technology is providing secure wireless connectivity for a next generation smart health and wellness M2M hub, developed by Vignet Corp.

This award-winning and cost-effective Hub¹ consolidates information from medical sensors by leveraging a cloud-based server that transforms data into easy-to-understand insights. Gemalto’s Cinterion® 3G/4G module enables the cellular transmission of data so that healthcare providers can provide remote care to patients. The end-to-end solution meets US privacy regulations like HIPAA², ensuring patient information is accessed only by authorized individuals.

According to Juniper Research, the remote patient monitoring solutions are expected to save healthcare providers up to $36 billion by 2018. The Gemalto-enabled Vignet Hub solution collects data from many sensors and devices such as pedometers, electrocardiogram patch, sleep sensors, weight scales, blood glucose and blood pressure devices and provides a dashboard view of overall health status to authorized caregivers and the health system. Medication reminders and behavioral prompts are delivered to the touch screen on the Hub or to the user’s mobile device to help with chronic disease management.

The mHealth technology sends alarm notifications to healthcare providers when medication is missed or thresholds are met which can improve remote patient monitoring and medical response time. Integrating Gemalto’s connectivity, the Vignet Hub provides an innovative, secure, HIPAA and privacy-compliant system. The Hub controls the collection, transfer, integration, and analysis of information while reporting sensor or manual based health related data about the patient’s well-being.

“Gemalto is leading the industry in enabling an end-to-end infrastructure that can handle disparate data and groups across the health and wellness landscape,” said Praduman Jain, CEO, Vignet Corp.

“The M2M solution’s connectivity across any network is crucial to addressing global needs such as extending physician oversight and medical care delivery to rural areas, and hard to reach populations.”

“Vignet Corp and Gemalto are at the center of the Internet of Things with innovations in remote patient monitoring that can reduce hospital re-admission, the duration of hospitalization, or the number of clinical visits for a more comfort oriented healthcare experience,” said Paul Kobos, Head of M2M, Gemalto North America.

“The growing aging population and an increase in chronic conditions are pushing healthcare systems to their limits, highlighting the need for modern solutions like the Vignet Hub that provide superior efficient management.”

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Allied Market Research today announced a report titled “mHealth Market (Devices, Applications, Services & Therapeutics) – Global Mobile Healthcare Industry Size, Analysis, Share, Growth, Trends and Forecast, 2012 – 2020”.

The study observed that the global mHealth market was valued at $6.7 billion in 2012 and is estimated to reach $8.3 billion by the end of 2013. With growing per capita healthcare expenditure both in developed and advanced developing countries, the mobile healthcare market is further projected to reach $58.8 billion by 2020, at a CAGR of 32.3% from 2013 to 2020.

Allied Market Research analystsJames Franco and Yojana Jeevane note:

“Per capita expenditure on healthcare in developed economies is increasing at a faster rate than inflation and income levels, chiefly due to ageing population and chronic diseases which are lifestyle driven.”

“However, there has not been corresponding improvement in the quality of healthcare services delivered, especially in developing regions. Additionally, developing economies are even struggling to provide healthcare access at every level to their people”, explains the analysts.

On contrary, ubiquitous access of smart mobile devices globally has enabled diagnostic and monitoring devices to render seamless healthcare services. Thus, this market is expected to grow at a significant pace in the next seven years. This projection is backed by the fact such as due to technological advancement integration of wireless technology with the portable healthcare devices is feasible, increasing incidences of lifestyle diseases, cost and convenience factors, government initiatives, affordability of smartphones.

However, weak reimbursement policies, lower adoption due to lack of accuracy and technology infancy and uncertainty in the government regulations is expected to hinder the growth rate. Moreover, untapped markets in developing economies provide a lot of growth opportunities for this market due to increase in adoption of mHealth services to control the spread of communicable as well as non-communicable diseases.Such challenges can be very well taken by adoption of mHealth devices and services as they work irrespective of location and skilled professionals. The only mandatory requirement is the mobile access and a smartphone.

This report segments the global mHealth Market on the basis of devices, services, stakeholders, and therapeutic areas. The global mHealth devices market is forecast to reach market value over $1.5 billion in 2013 from $0.8 billion in 2011. The contributory factors for this growth is high revenue generated from blood glucose meters, cardiac monitors and BP monitors in descending order. The services market is projected to grow over $6 billion by 2013 from 2011 market values of $4 billion mainly due to increase in revenues generated from monitoring and diagnostic services. In stakeholders market study mobile operators as well as device vendors will account for more than 75% of the overall market share by 2020.

The geography market assessment signifies that Europe along with North America will account for about 55% of the overall market revenue in 2013 and may reduce with growing demand in Asia Pacific region. The study also offers an updated review on the present major market player such as manufacturers of mobile medical devices, and mobile network providers; which also includes description of relevant recent developments activities. Companies profiles in this report includes Philips healthcare, Omron HealthCare Inc., Bayer Healthcare, LifeWatch, Cardionet Inc., Masimo Corporation, Sanofie, Boston Scientific, AT&T Inc., and Johnson & Johnson.

Get the full access of the report at http://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/mobile-health-market=77

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Cardiac and chronic disease remote patient monitoring to result in less time in hospital and fewer outpatient visits.

Juniper Research’s latest report on the mHealth market forecasts cumulative cost savings from remote patient monitoring of up to 36 billion USD globally over the next five years – under Juniper’s most optimistic forecast scenario.

This is a significant opportunity, as healthcare in the developed world moves towards the concept of “accountable care”, where funding is linked directly to the health of the patient or individual rather than being based upon the cost of treatment.

Even though remote patient monitoring, particularly for chronic diseases, is still at a very early stage in the development cycle, it fits well with new healthcare practices and the goal of keeping patients out of hospital, finds the report.

New mHealth Models Emerging

Meanwhile the combination of the smartphone, mHealth attachments and companion apps is creating an entirely new route for providing mHealth services. Smartphone-based mHealth is expected to grow more rapidly than mHealth services delivered through bespoke devices, finds the report.

The report’s author Anthony Cox says:

“mHealth hardware linking directly to a companion app on the smartphone has become an exciting new area of mHealth.”

noting that it is also drawing attention to what mHealth can bring to the table.

Further findings from the report include:

• Western Europe will be the most promising new market for cardiac outpatient monitoring after the US as partnerships emerge for its provision in the region.
• Demonstrating cost-savings to those funding the healthcare sector is likely to be the most effective way of advancing mHealth.
• Juniper Research forecasts robust growth in the adjacent mobile-fitness industry, driven by a motivated user-base and coherent product offering from several players.

In spite of positive signs in several areas of the mHealth industry, the report also finds that mHealth players’ business models are hampered by a lack of clarity on how they will be reimbursed for the services they provide.

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The M2M mHealth Market Revenue Will Reach $138 billion by 2020.

As the healthcare IT industry continues to evolve, a growing number of medical device manufacturers are bringing to market innovative machine-to-machine (M2M) solutions to enable better patient care. Recently, Verizon has consolidated and redesigned its Partner Program into a new streamlined organization. Verizon is partnering with two telehealth solutions providers – Carematix and Sonicu – and is offering its Partner Program initiative to serve as a catalyst toward the adoption of M2M wireless healthcare solutions in the marketplace. A new Strategy Analytics M2M Strategies insight “Verizon Partner Program Highlights increased Mobile Operator focus on mHealth Solutions” provides a snapshot of the existing landscape and exams different strategies mobile operators implemented to ensure success within the M2M healthcare market.

Gina Luk, Senior Analyst of Mobile Workforce Strategies (MWS) and author of the report said:

“mHealth is a key driver in the world’s developed and developing regions, through growth in both dedicated devices and mobile handsets. Strategy Analytics is pleased to see Verizon expanding its partnership and offering a portfolio of managed, IT and consulting services for the healthcare industry to help transform patient care delivery, enhance access to care and better manage costs.”

“Verizon has more to gain than just forming an alliance to ensure a better healthcare. There are also many opportunities for Verizon to offer value-added services to the healthcare industry using the cellular network and build out extensive managed mobility portfolios by leveraging technologies and network related to managed mobility to their M2M mhealth portfolios,” added Andrew Brown, Director of M2M research at Strategy Analytics.

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