Although LA is most known for its entertainment and e-commerce startups, there are about 50 Los Angeles-based digital companies that are disrupting healthcare, according to Built In LA’s company database. These companies are coming up with cost savings and a new sense of patient control using online marketplaces and cloud-based software products.
Ultimately, LA's healthcare companies are dealing with big problems: the United States spends more on healthcare per person than any other nation, according to the World Health Organization, yet consistently ranks worst than its peers in terms of healthcare outcomes. Is there any industry more ready for disruption than healthcare? Here are three companies that are already doing just that:
Brighter
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“Only 36 percent of Americans go to the dentist in a given year and you’re supposed to go twice a year,” said Jake Winebaum, CEO of Brighter.com.
People don’t usually go to the dentist because of costs, "which is why price transparency and consumerism is so important in dental care,” said Winebaum. At Brighter “we wanted to provide price transparency for a variety of services.”
Using a classic online marketplace and a cutting-edge understanding of the dental market, Brighter is curating a set of qualified dentists who are willing to give their services at discounts of on average 52 percent below retail.
Nephosity
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“We work with patients who carry bags of CDs between doctors,” said Mika Wang, head of business development at Nephosity. "The issue with medical imaging today is it is a very fragmented, siloed system.”
Nephosity wants to change that by pushing medical images to the cloud. And it is not as easy as it sounds. Entrenched interests, patient privacy law and massive file sizes make the medical imaging industry a problem.
Through clever technology and a very industry-aware strategy, Nephosity is beginning its quest to simplify the transfer, use and collaboration around medical imaging.
Wisercare
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In healthcare, “a lot of things get done that we know don’t help people,” said Chris Saigal, co-founder of Wisercare.
In fact, “healthcare stakeholders understand there is a lot of inappropriate health spending,” said David Cerino, CEO of Wisercare. And Wisercare is trying to correct that.
Wisercare’s software is informing patients of treatments that best match their lifestyle preferences, by shrinking down the complexity of medical research into reports patients can use to make treatment choices. The company believes when patients are empowered with a deeper understand of their treatment options it will not only improve patient satisfaction, but also reduce costs and medical mal-practice liabilities.
