The U.S. healthcare industry is amidst one of the biggest transformations any industry has seen since the dot-com boom of the late 1990s. This massive change is being stimulated by federal mandates, technological innovation and the need to improve clinical outcomes and communication between providers, patients and payers.
An aging population, increase in chronic diseases, lower reimbursement rates and a shift to value-based payments — plus the COVID-19 pandemic — have added pressure and highlighted the need for new technology to enhance virtual and value-based care.
Improving medical outcomes now requires processing massive amounts of healthcare data, and the cloud plays a pivotal role in meeting the current needs of healthcare organizations.
Challenges in healthcare
Most of today’s healthcare challenges fall into two broad categories: rapidly rising costs and an increased burden on resources. Rising costs — and the resulting inadequacy of healthcare resources — can stem from:
An aging population: As people age and live longer, healthcare gets more expensive. As medicine improves, people aged 65 and above are expected to account for 20% of the U.S. population by 2030, per the U.S. Census Bureau.
