Telehealth Market Overview
As per Market Research Future (MRFR) analysis, the Global Telehealth Market is expected to reach USD 16,173.8 million with a CAGR of 22.74% from 2017 to 2024 (forecast period).
Telehealth is the use of digital information and communication technologies to access healthcare facilities remotely for health management purposes. Telehealth connects patients to primary healthcare facilities through remote monitoring, video conferencing, electronic consultations, and wireless communication. Factors such as, the increase in the geriatric population, growing prevalence of chronic diseases and the lack of doctors are the key drivers of the telehealth industry's growth. Privacy and security issues and strict policy rules for telehealth services could impede market growth during the forecast period.
Telehealth Market Dynamics
Telehealth could be used effectively to diagnose, treat, and support chronic diseases such as diabetes and cancer. Chronic diseases reduce the quality of life of an individual, particularly if left undiagnosed or untreated. As per the data by the Government of Canada, about 2.3 million people aged 12 and older were diagnosed with diabetes in 2017. In addition, according to the Chiron Health press release published in June 2016, an estimated 117 million people in the Americas have been affected by chronic diseases such as heart disease, stroke, depression, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity, and arthritis. Telehealth can be used to meet the growing demand for health services for cancer, diabetes, and other diseases in developing regions. As a result, the high prevalence of these diseases is expected to boost the growth during the forecast period.
There are some federal limitations, regulatory and legislative barriers to data privacy, cybersecurity, and care accuracy that have made adoption of telehealth and remote patient monitoring difficult. Secondly, the medical treatment given under the area of virtual treatment and telehealth was without incentives, with many limitations as to which type of care qualifies for medical reimbursement. Moreover, Healthcare provider required HIPAA to comply with the software and technology needed to offer telehealth services, and the breach of these laws resulted in substantial penalties. All of these factors are expected to impede the growth of the market during the forecast period.
Covid-19 Analysis /Covid-19 Impact on the Global Telehealth Market
It didn't take a novel coronavirus for the telehealth industry to begin to gain momentum between healthcare providers and patients. Telehealth was already experiencing considerable momentum and development before this public health emergency, especially over the past few years, as technology has become more streamlined, and the young generation of tech-savvy is becoming more involved in this care model. The demand for telehealth is increasing, but many customers remain confused or unsure about its availability.
Statistically, 40% of doctors are providing treatment for coronavirus patients, and 60% of doctors are forced to abandon their treatment unless they have been told otherwise. Social distancing and lockdowns throughout countries due to COVID-19 forced non-urgent health care providers to shut their doors and encouraged many patients to receive treatment remotely. Owing to the volatility of the COVID-19 crisis, a number of health care providers are considering modifying their business model and introducing telehealth solutions as part of their daily medical system. Telehealth is no longer a secondary treatment option but a must-have option for health practitioners and patients.
Given the wide-reaching COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Impact on Telehealth Market, companies are on the lookout for new opportunities to sustain in the coming years. Gain new insights into the market and alternative solutions for keeping production steady in unforeseen circumstances.
Use of Telehealth Services in Fighting COVID-19
- To minimize the risk of spread of COVID-19
- Reduce the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) in outpatient services, which needs to be spared in more critical situations. Secure clinicians by reducing direct contact with contaminated patients.
- Suspected cases and milder cases of COVID-19 that do not require hospitalization can be monitored remotely, freeing up beds for severe cases.
Post COVID-19 Telehealth Scenario
- The rapid expansion of telehealth services due to COVID-19 will have long-term implications, and solutions and services will remain readily accessible even after the end of the coronavirus pandemic.
- As people have already seen telehealth in practice during this unpredictable period and are experiencing its benefits, in the future, the telehealth industry should see a rise in usage with improved functionality and accessibility worldwide.
- As predicted, the relaxation of the HIPAA regulations and the breach penalty will be lifted after the pandemic. Care professionals and patients are likely to turn to HIPAA-compliant and more safe telehealth systems to receive medical attention.
Processes to be Streamlined Post the Pandemic
- Government regulations need to be evaluated to protect the privacy of patient data and to ensure IT network security while offering the best medical care through virtual platforms.
- Clinical protocols and workflows should be reviewed to ensure that remote care is used only for appropriate conditions and that the doctor-patient relationship is not jeopardized.
- We, the people, need to ensure that our healthcare insurance programs have sufficient incentives for telehealth use.
- Proper preparation needs to be given to healthcare workers as they change the way they function.
Telehealth Market Segmentation
By component, the global telehealth market has been segregated into services, software, and hardware. The services segment held the largest share due to the rising initiatives of key organizations. In contrast, the software segment is estimated to rise fastest due to a growing inclination towards telehealth software. The hardware industry was further sub-segmented into monitoring devices, medical peripherals, and others. The market for monitoring devices has been sub-categorized into stationary and wearable monitoring devices. The demand for medical peripherals was further classified into blood pressure monitors, ECG monitors, pulse oximeters, peak flow meters, blood glucose meters, otoscopes, and others. The software industry has been broken down into integrated software and stand-alone software. The market for services has also been listed as remote monitoring, real-time interactions, and store-and-forward consultations.
By mode of delivery, the global market for telehealth has been divided into web/cloud-based and on-premise. The web/cloud-based segment holds a significant share due to its broad preferability. In contrast, the on-premise segment is expected to be the fastest-growing segment due to rising awareness among hospital management.
By application, the global telehealth market has been categorized as radiology, cardiology, primary care, neurophysiology, and others. The radiology segment held a significant share due to the increased use of telehealth technologies in the radiology field. In contrast, the cardiology segment is expected to be the fastest-growing due to the rise in cardiovascular disease.
By the end-user, the global telehealth market has been classified as hospitals and clinics, diagnostic clinics, home care, and others. The hospitals and clinical segment held a significant share due to the increase in the number of hospitals using telehealth software. At the same time, the diagnostic clinical segment is expected to be the fastest growing segment due to an increasing tendency towards telehealth services.
Telehealth Market Regional Analysis
Regionally, the global telehealth market share has been segmented into the Americas, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and the Middle East & Africa.
The Americas are expected to dominate the global demand for telehealth. It can be due to the growing acceptance of telehealth services in the United States. For example, in 2016, Kaiser Permanente, a California-based Integrated Managed Care Company, performed more consultations virtually than in person, i.e., almost 52% of the 110 million physician visits were through online portals, virtual visits, or apps.
The European market for telehealth is projected to be the second-largest market. The paradigm shift towards more structured and continuous monitoring of healthcare is expected to be a major factor in the industry's growth. In 2018, Italy had a market share of 12.4% for telehealth in Western Europe.
The Asia Pacific is emerged as the fastest-growing region on the global market due to a rise in the prevalence of chronic diseases, an increase in the geriatric population and a lack of technical personnel.
The Middle East & Africa are expected to see significant growth due to limited access and affordability of healthcare.
Telehealth Market Key players
The prominent participants in the global telehealth market are
- AMD Global Telemedicine Inc. (US)
- Siemens (Germany)
- Allscripts Healthcare Solutions (US)
- Boston Scientific Corporation (US)
- Right Health (Canada)
- American Well (US)
- InTouch Technologies Inc. (US)
- GlobalMed (US)
- Care Innovations LLC (US)
- Honeywell International Inc. (US)
- Medtronic PLC (Ireland)
- Dialogue (Canada)
- Philips Healthcare (Netherlands)
- Cerner Corporation (US)
- Cisco Systems Inc. (US)
- Maple (Canada)
- Livecare Health (Canada)
Telehealth Industry News
American Well launched the American Well 760 Cart in January 2019, which enables remote specialists to be brought into the room by acute care teams at health systems. The new cart was designed for health systems running telehealth using American Well software or an existing Cisco infrastructure.
Steps taken by governments around the globe to introduce telehealth services during COVID-19;
In the United States, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has set up a USD 200 million COVID-19 Telehealth Initiative to help qualified healthcare facilities continue to treat patients with telehealth technology. This initiative will help to make technology more available to patients who may otherwise be unable to access telehealth services.
Lowered Regulatory Barriers (Temporarily) - The regulatory changes have reduced or removed, at least temporarily, the obstacles that previously existed to enable providers and patients to opt for telehealth over in-person visits, when necessary.
On 17 March 2020, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights announced a series of restrictions against HIPAA violations during the pandemic to promote the use of standard video conferencing apps, including WhatsApp, Facetime, Zoom, and several others that do not have the necessary security features, are allowed (temporarily) to be used for teleconsultation.
The Japanese Ministry, METI, has launched a free remote health consultation service to address the related concerns of COVID-19. The main participants in this program are Mediplat and LINE Healthcare. During the duration from 11 to 31 March, the two companies managed to handle up to 5,000 consultations a day.
In April 2020, the Ministry of Health and NITI Aayog released guidelines for “Telemedicine” amidst COVID-19 in India. With these updated guidelines, 70% of the patient inquiries for consultations have increased.
