VCs: Framework in place for digital health boom

Jonah Comstock | MobiHealthNews | October 24, 2013

At the Partners Healthcare Connected Health Symposium in Boston, Massachusetts, four major investors in digital health talked about the state of the health investment landscape.

In a panel moderated by Bill Geary of Northbridge Venture Partners, Andrew Firlik and Lee Wrubel from Foundation Medical Partners and Michael Greeley from Flybridge Capital Partners contended that digital health is at something of a tipping point because apps, the internet, and provider back-end systems like EMRs are now advanced and widespread enough to foster low-cost innovation.

“We have the framework, the infrastructure now largely in place for all of these incredible value add technologies to be derived,” Greeley said. “I think we’re poised for some really interesting companies that will be multibillion dollar outcomes.”

...“We’re seeing the ability on relatively small dollars to build really compelling tools that providers absolutely need to run their businesses,” he said. “It’s so incredibly disruptive to legacy vendors, but in healthcare we needed to see that cost curve collapse to really get innovative products.”