Most things are turning mobile technology and healthcare is not an exception. While the industry has traditionally had a hands-on focus, the mobility trend has turned the way we treat and maintain health upside down. In the modern world, things such as health insurance rely on these new technologies and the end-results are often much more beneficial to us, the end-users. The mobile health insurance revolution could lead to a healthier and happier society.
Healthcare is going mobile
The future of mobile healthcare is already here. If you browse today’s app stores, whether for iOS or Android devices, you will find tens of thousands mobile apps related to health and fitness. The best-selling apps are generating lots of money and people’s willingness to pay for a good app is evident in the fact that there are nearly 300,000 paid app downloads every day. Half of today’s smartphone users would have downloaded a mobile health app at some point. This figure is likely to continue increasing.
The most popular mobile healthcare apps are related to weight loss and exercise. However, there is plenty of innovation happening in the field. Apps related to women’s health issues, such as period and ovulation trackers, are increasing in popularity and a lot of people are also finding the benefits of sleep and meditation apps. And while health insurance apps are not yet widely used, there is plenty of innovation in the field which will continue pouring into actual user numbers in the coming years.
One of the big factors behind healthcare industry’s move to mobile, especially in terms of health insurance innovation, is the push by actual healthcare providers. A recent study by Zebra showed that hospitals that have implemented mobile apps in patient care are witnessing improvements in patient care. Improvements have happened both in terms of the quality of care and the cost of care.
Health insurance and mobile applications
The big reason mobile health insurance will continue to become a bigger player is directly related to the fact that it can offer health and financial benefits to users. Health insurance applications are already being at the forefront of health innovation. The apps can be tied into other types of apps – providing users with tips on a healthier lifestyle such as exercise tips, cooking tips and sleeping advice, for example. Learning about healthy habits is much easier and apps are very good at incentivising these choices as well in terms of things like gamification.
But even more useful than that are the innovative health insurance and healthcare apps that monitor everyday health. These can utilise the help of wearables, such as smartwatches. These can monitor people’s heartbeats and other daily function. They can even follow up calories consumption and the amount of sleep you are getting. Based on the data, these apps can provide tips and advice that can lead to healthier lifestyle changes. But on top of this, they can also provide key information to healthcare providers, such as insurers, in terms of things like illnesses and injuries.
The benefit of these apps will not only lead to improved health and better healthcare decision. The end-user can even benefit in terms of insurance cost. When insurers can monitor a person’s healthcare data, in terms of daily decisions and actual bodily functionalities, they can provide a more personalised insurance experience. This means that health insurance will be tailored to a person’s specific needs – not only can this lead to enhanced quality of care and coverage of care but also to cheaper insurance costs. For example, your insurance could be tied to your healthier lifestyle, providing actual cost benefits to people that make smarter healthcare decisions. Suddenly things such as active lifestyle or weight loss are not just about the health benefits but also financial benefits of living a healthier lifestyle.
Furthermore, at the moment mobile health insurance offers already the benefit of saving money. This is down to the ability for people to be a lot more selective in terms of the health insurance they use. For instance, health insurance in Dubai is providing tools that allow people to compare different health insurances on the go. Having the ability to check and compare multiple insurance options will allow customers to figure out the best insurance for their needs. Mobile health insurance provides more personalised healthcare solutions that are also going to create cost-effective solutions for users.
The interesting thing in terms of the future will be how employers are going to implement mobile healthcare apps and insurance. In many countries around the world, health insurance is often tied to one’s employment, with employers providing health insurance to workers. With enhanced integration of wearable technology and healthcare apps, employers can start providing more personalised insurance solutions to workers and do so without having to increase the cost of health insurance.
The next steps for mobile health insurance
Mobile health insurance is undoubtedly going to continue innovating. The kind of apps mentioned above will become a much bigger part of the healthcare application industry. While there are only a limited amount of insurance apps available at the moment, the numbers will keep going up and this will lead to better and more cost-effective options for everyday users. Comparisons of insurance apps is going to be the key in terms of ensuring these apps aren’t just intrusive data machines but actually lead to quality healthcare outcomes and cheap solutions.
In terms of health insurance, mobile offers a lot of opportunities. Not only do those opportunities come in the form of leading to healthier people and more cost-effective solutions, but also a more personalised insurance experience. It is very likely that tomorrow’s health insurance won’t be a complex, huge contract you need to sign with a lack of opportunities. Tomorrow’s health insurance will be more like an individual experience and one where the consumer gets to choose their coverage more specifically. This means looking at the different elements they want to include, the different healthcare focuses they need in terms of their conditions and lifestyle, and unique ways in which they can ensure their insurance actually works for them – both in terms of staying healthy but also financially worthy.