Consumerism Will Spark Change Across the Industry: My Top Seven Health IT Predictions for 2019

As we prepare to take on the challenges and opportunities of a new year, let’s lay out some of the industry’s macro trends and what they might mean to us in 2019.

This year, there is a theme. As patients, we have an increasingly consumer-oriented mindset—and rightfully so. We’re paying closer attention to the quality and value we’re getting for the money we’re spending. This “consumerization” of healthcare, along with constant technology innovation, is driving a tectonic shift across the industry, and it’s easy to be excited about what the future holds. 

After nearly 40 years in this business, I’d better be getting good at reading between the lines to understand what’s coming next. So without further ado, here are my top seven health IT predictions for 2019.

1. Consumerization of healthcare reaches tipping point
2. Telehealth, mobility and millennials will upend the who and where of care delivery
3. Consumers will demand healthcare price transparency
4. People will insist on the ability to easily share their health data -- forcing the industry to accelerate interoperability solutions
5. Increased interoperability will propel value-based care
6. Initially driven by government regulations, the health IT industry will take the lead on battling the opioid epidemic
7. The healthcare market will demand easier, more appropriate access to high cost specialty drugs

The full Surescripts article can be viewed at this link.