Alex Kormushoff

Imagine swallowing the competition whole. That's what many players in tech do via roll-up strategies, gobbling up smaller firms to deliver richer solutions and amass greater market share. Where else are roll-up strategies common? // HEALTHCARE Picture being a patient at a medical practice that’s been part of a roll-up in Healthcare Services. It's an industry ripe for roll-ups due to its fragmented nature and potential for greater efficiency. // CONSUMER SERVICES Or let's say you needed your HVAC serviced, and notice your local repairman is now part of a bigger Consumer Services entity? Centralized management and scale economy turn these localized businesses into roll-up targets. // FINANCIAL SERVICES Think about your insurance agent or wealth management advisor. They're working in complex, highly regulated environments. In the Financial Services sector, roll-ups offer an effective way to consolidate expertise, streamline operations, and enhance customer offerings. // MANUFACTURING Now, imagine driving past factories under a new name — the result of Manufacturing and Industrial Services roll-ups. Bulk purchasing reduces costs, enhances production capabilities, and expands geographical footprints. // REAL ESTATE Lastly, envision your real estate brokerage firm. The industry sees roll-ups as a strategic move to increase market penetration, enhance service offerings, and hike up portfolio value. Roll-ups play a huge role in most industries, rather like a snowball rolling downhill, gaining momentum, and size. Are you seeing roll-ups in your sector or considering M&A?

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$1.6 billion. That's what UnitedHealth Group projects as the total earnings impact in 2024 of the February Change Healthcare #ransomware attack. This includes both direct response costs (e.g. platform restoration and increased medical care expenditures) and business disruption impacts (e.g. lost revenue). The figure is now so large that it shows up in the net earnings calculation as part of the first-quarter 2024 financial results announced on Tuesday. And remember that UnitedHealth hasn't yet disclosed the amount of personal #data breached in the hack - it needs to do this within 60 days of learning about the breach, and that time expires next week. The damage could get even worse. More needs to be done to detect and prevent ransomware. 10-figure costs should not become the norm. If you're a #founder working on a new idea, please reach out! Reuters Article: https://lnkd.in/gXBQ5pwb P.S. In case you're wondering, I have lots of thoughts on Lacework/Wiz but waiting for a little more information before sharing a post. Rumors are just rumors.

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One key reason why healthcare technologies like AI, telemedicine, and software haven't structurally lowered costs or broadened access for the entire system after decades of experimentation (excluding pure financial engineering of payer contracts) is the limited reimagining of care delivery itself, with asynchronous telemedicine as a notable exception. In the same way that digitizing physical paper failed to exploit the capabilities of a new computing medium for word processing, hosting physician-patient conversations over video does not transform the actual delivery of care. In telemedicine, many of the inputs (e.g., clinician time) and therefore cost structures of in-person care persist, which is why we often see fee-for-service telemedicine companies struggle to achieve economies of scale (i.e., growing revenues non-linearly while growing costs linearly). Until we deconstruct the components of a medical appointment – from intake and triage, to chart review, history gathering, physical examination, diagnosis, treatment, and follow-up – we will continue to be underwhelmed by the disconnect between the transformative potential of these technologies and real-world patient/system impact. I’m optimistic that the emergence of reliable and performant medical AI agents will urge us to perform this deconstruction and redesign the fundamental building blocks of a “medical appointment.”

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As the discourse shifts from models to compound AI systems / agents, we need better AI benchmarks to evaluate multi-modal and multi-step task performance, especially in healthcare and life sciences. When we wrote the first paper demonstrating ChatGPT's performance on the USMLE, we chose the US Medical Licensing Exam as a benchmark for accessibility, speed, and ease. This benchmark was never intended to represent AI model performance on real-world clinical tasks. Today, I still see so many research teams and startups using benchmarks (like the USMLE) that are ill-fitted for assessing the true clinical or scientific performance and utility of the models they are developing for real-world contexts. Benchmark development may be seen as a "less sexy" area of research, but it is of paramount importance. Years after the rise of the transformer, we still lack adequate benchmarks for so many single-step tasks in biomedicine. With compound AI systems (i.e., architectures that integrate multiple AI models to perform complex tasks) emerging, we need new benchmarks for agentic behaviors. I'd argue that developing an agent with novel capabilities without at least proposing a companion benchmark (if an industry standard does not yet exist) may hinder the adoption of said agent, especially for high-stakes workflows. Designing more benchmarks that capture/simulate real-world clinical and scientific workflows will help us mitigate the major discrepancies observed between in silico and in vivo performance and better support safe + effective deployment of AI in biomedicine. There are already brilliant people focused here, and we need more. DMs are open if you're researching or working in this area of multi-step/multi-modal benchmarking in healthcare and life sciences! #healthcare #ai #artificialintelligence #generativeai

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Digital Health: Countervailing Forces… Consider this: over the past five years nearly $78 billion has been invested in digital health companies and yet just this past year over 20 million Americans were taken off the Medicaid rolls. Certain policy changes can be very damaging, to say nothing of other human-induced factors like pollution, climate change, wars, inadequate housing and education, and hunger which have staggering implications on health. At times it can feel like bailing water out of a sinking ship.    The overall venture capital activity in 1Q24 was a relatively muted $36.6 billion across 2,882 companies for an average round size of $12.7 million, as compared to $51.6 billion and 4,026 companies in 1Q23. Notwithstanding that the level of investment activity in the healthcare technology sector has receded from the $30 billion highwater mark in 2021 to a more manageable $10 – $12 billion annual pace, the opportunities to “transform the business of healthcare” remain obvious and acute. Arguably, the 2021 hangover still lingers in the healthcare technology sector as companies that raised too much capital at too high a price work to sort out challenging cap tables. Out of the 2021 mosh pit of too many companies, it appears that the sector is in an “Emerging Winners” phase that will drive companies with narrow and/or incomplete offerings to combine or shut down.   Thoughts on what to expect for the remainder of the year… https://lnkd.in/egy7Afhg Flare Capital Partners #digitalhealth

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Article in today’s WSJ highlights the skyrocketing cost of healthcare bills for payors and patients. 4L FWA Prevention powered by Integr8 AI can detect these schemes to incrementally ratchet up claims cost in mear real-time. Stop abusive billing schemes when thet start. Find, Fight and Prevent FWA Fast!

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"So much of what we do in the healthcare industry is constrained by the way we share medical records," says Salman Haque, Co-CEO at Medsender. "Unstructured data creates a lot of additional work for patients, providers, and everyone in between. Our solution transforms communication from a pain point into an advantage." "As a startup, we prioritize speed, and the ability to train and deploy new models quickly allows us to solve more problems for the healthcare professionals we work with," Tohmaz says. "If every experiment took weeks, it wouldn't be scalable. With Vertex AI, we can train, deploy, and test a model in a couple of days." Salman Haque https://lnkd.in/eSQNr2ki

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Manually entering patient data into your EHR? Duncan McGillivary explores how AI is revolutionizing healthcare, offering solutions that break free from clunky EHRs and deliver more efficient workflows. Check out our latest #AnsaOpenSpaces. #healthcare #AI #EHR #clinicianempowerment

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Still trying to make sense of Walmart pulling back from healthcare delivery? 3 quick thoughts: 🏥 Healthcare delivery is hard, even for companies where it's a primary focus. Navigating reimbursement and competition is extremely challenging. 💸 The patient may be a customer, but they are never the payer. 📊 No matter a company's stature, cooperation and reimbursement from health plans—both nationally and locally—are still critical for building profitable businesses. For a deeper dive, check out our full analysis here: https://lnkd.in/eXTeugKD

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Now, more than ever, timely access to high-quality, privacy-preserving healthcare data is necessary for driving better care. That's why we've developed solutions that automate lengthy processes, capture customer preferences, and deliver compliant, productive datasets for meaningful insights. I couldn't be more proud of the team at Integral. They’ve created the solutions necessary to leverage highly sensitive data in a safe and rich way. If you're an organization seeking to leverage your healthcare data quickly and compliantly, we're here to help. Let's connect: https://hubs.li/Q02zRBtY0 #healthcaredata #dataprivacy #compliance

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Newest episode of #HealthAndVeritas with guest, Mitesh Rao, MD, CEO of OMNY Health talking about democratizing access to healthcare data and improving health through more reliable information. Harlan Krumholz talks about "The business case for quality: estimating lives saved and harms avoided in a value-based purchasing model" an article in Health Affairs Scholar that returns us to the uncomfortable domain of asking why our "system" doesn't do more to save lives and improve health outcomes. I talk about Marijuana. I am concerned that we are watching a slow moving catastrophe due to the desire to decriminalize and reduce controls over Cannabis and THC-containing products (which is good) while paying too little attention to quality and regulations. Listen to the pod and tell me what YOU think. And please post your comments, tell a friend, and rate and review us on your favorite podcast app. Yale School of Management Yale School of Public Health Yale School of Medicine https://lnkd.in/ezj8qVqy

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I imagine a healthcare system where every data point leads to better patient care. Real-time data analysis and proactive clinical outreach are the keys to this transformation. But there’s a crucial bridge we must build: patient trust in our outreach efforts. How do we achieve this? By ensuring that our outreach is not just timely, but tailored and empathetic. It’s not just about the flow of information; it’s about pairing the right resources with each patient, empowering them to actively engage in their own healthcare journey. This personalized approach isn’t just a luxury—it’s the cornerstone of successful patient outcomes.

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Exciting discussions on on AI in healthcare delivery at #TiEcon2024! Ramesh Raskar emphasized the importance of decentralization of AI to build trust - Imagine if doctors could bid for the data Kevin Schulman points the system is so broken and Greg Yap reminds Entrepreuner to focus on the business models early enough to make sure the “juice is worth the squeeze” #healthcare #AI Sandeep Bhat Surbhi Kaul Ajay Manglani Aparna M. Deepa N. Avanish Mishra, Ph.D. Reena B. Viraj Khatri

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Have y’all ever watched someone pour water in a cup so fast that it overflows? That’s where I think we are in US #healthcare right now, and according to an article by Yahoo Finance, I’m spot on: US Healthcare spending rose to $4.8 Trillion in 2023, an estimated 17.6% of US GDP. Now I’ve worked in roles across #publichealth, #healthcare and #pharma, but admittedy never quite understood the economic jargon of comparing US healthcare spending to gross domestic product (GDP). So here’s my attempt at explaining this in plain language. ✨ GDP is the total value of all goods produced in a country during a time period; it’s a measure of the size and health of an economy. ✨ Healthcare spending refers to all money spent on healthcare services and products in a country— i.e- hospitals, doctors, medications, insurance… ✨ Why do we compare the two? When we compare healthcare spending to GDP it helps us understand how much of our economic resources are being used for health related expenses. ✨What does this headline mean? U.S. healthcare spending grew faster than the economy *overall* last year—and is expected to do so through 2032. Think of it like this: if we pour water in a cup too quickly, it will overflow. This is like healthcare costs rising faster than the economy can sustain. ✨What’s driving the increase in cost? 1) Insurance coverage has hit historic highs, 2) Medicare is projected to have the highest spending growth, 3) Hospital spending is soaring… Here are a few additional thoughts I had… 💡 How will the rapid uptake of #AI in healthcare, impact these projections? 💡 I wonder how projected healthcare workforce shortages will impact this? 💡*This* is what we mean when we say everyone should care about #healthequity, because inequities are costing all of us. What do y’all think about future drivers of cost or solutions? Drop me a line in the comments! #healthcareonlinkedin

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17 reasons I loved #GTM24! 17. Sonal Mane could be a standalone reason to love this event! Her future of GTM AI and automation session with John Hessinger identified things GTMers should be experimenting with and how to incorporate GenAI into existing workflows. 16. Peter Ward’s discourse on formalizing market readiness and ways to align cross-functional groups. 15. Macy Berg Mody’s example of eliminating repetitive x-team readouts and making meetings more productive with shared tech informing multiple groups on customer feedback. 14. Holly Holbrook's best practices for internal comms like creating a “front door” for cross-team conversations and ideation. 13. Emi Wayner’s practical guide to GTM launch metrics was great, but it was even better to hear how she evolves metrics while retaining focus on key impact areas. 12. I loved Candice Sparks and Lexie Knauer’s dialogue on building for parity vs. differentiation. Don’t let your product get in the way of a good story! 11. The most POV-altering moment of the conference (for me) was the fireside chat on unlocking brand growth with Maya Shah-Ceccotti, Karen Sage, and Nidhi Daga. It changed my thinking re: CLG. Build it into growth motions intentionally upfront! 10. “If you build it with them, they are already there.” - Kasey Stinson. 9. 43% of buyers desire a “seller-free” sales experience, according to Gartner (and Filip Szymanski in his session on PLG vs. SLG). I appreciated his thoughts on scaling growth loops, whether collaboration growth loops or user content growth loops. 8. More people would remotely lead successful GTM teams if they followed Paige Lapen’s “make work rock” framework or James B. Stanton’s weekly meeting cadence: Commit - “CFC” - Complete. 7. Internal messaging gets diluted with multiple communication methods, as Somesh Chablani pointed out. Don’t drop it into Slack and assume everyone knows. Overcommunicate with remote teams. 6. Daniel Kuperman’s competitive intelligence matrix and launch blueprint could have been an entire session, and I still would have wanted more! 5. Nonya Collier is the collaboration queen! Co-creation in a brain trust, codifying insights, amplifying the collective intel. 4. “Beyond the Launch” by Ed Cho may have convinced me that math can be fun and definitely convinced me of the necessity of focusing on pipeline maturation and not just pipeline creation. 3. Ariel Cai walked through how AI is redefining the go-to-market playbook. 2. I was excited to share my session on accelerating sustainable growth with ideal customer profiles. Plus, in a shocking turn of events, I got to chair the second day! 1. The number one reason to attend any event from The Alliance/GTM Alliance is to connect with the most incredible people! I can’t list everyone, but I have to mention Chase Payne, Cinthia Silva, Jan, Amy 🐆, Rohit Angle, Alisha Johnson, Catherine Knoll, Samantha, Sasha, and I finally got to meet the mastermind behind it all: Jack Debono!

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🌟 A Better Future: Greater Trust of Generative AI in Healthcare 🌟 Just released: My latest Forbes blog, where I share thoughts on some surprising statistics that were revealed in a recent survey from Deloitte. For all the upside that generative AI will offer to patients, consumers, and organizational stakeholders, we must respect the crucial cornerstone of trust. As AI and generative AI are pouring into healthcare biggest challenges and needs, how it lands matters. We need to respect that patients are at the center of care and related transactions. Setting the right foundation is extremely important and wholly necessary. And in my latest blog, I share 6 strategies to help healthcare organizations who will be utilizing generative AI. #Trust #GenerativeAI #ForbesBlog #FutureOfHealthcare

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Wonderful session with Dr. Eve Cunningham MD MBA, Providence, Chief of Virtual Care and Digital Health. Eve says: the maturation curve for virtual care is messy and takes time; we’re re-piping the way we deliver care with digital infrastructure. Key highlights: - Providence is one of the top 10 health systems in the US with $28+ bn in revenue, operating in 7 states with 50+ hospitals and 1000 clinics - It has 3 strategic priorities: workforce shortage and burnout, hospital throughput and capacity, care fragmentation - In virtual care and digital health, Providence has digital asynchronous care delivery using MedPearl; remote patient monitoring; remote physical therapy - Providence conducts 1+ mn virtual visits a year for ambulatory care - It has a large in-patient telemedicine program at scale across 7 states, meeting patients where they are in 90+ hospitals - Created clinical intelligence engine called MedPearl which provides actionable intelligence to clinicians at point of care. It’s a combination of digital assistant and content library to help the doctor address the cognitive, data and knowledge overload they experience. - Barriers to omnichannel healthcare are doctors being creatures of habit. As well, innovation that doesn’t work from the past decade of investment in innovation lacking necessary clinician input. - There’s a lot of regulatory uncertainty around virtual care; need permanency in reimbursement and insurance Link to full episode https://lnkd.in/e3V3AW3R. Thank you for tuning into The Beat! #health #healthcare #wellness #ceo #leadership #innovation #technology #digital #business #data #ai #artificialintelligence #generativeai #venturecapital #privateequity #investment #entrepreneurship #founders #startups #grateful #media #podcast #codebreakermindset #hlth HLTH

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The healthcare industry's impact on the environment is a hidden cost we can no longer ignore. The sector is responsible for nearly 5% of global emissions, and a significant portion comes from operating rooms (ORs). These critical spaces are energy guzzlers, generate massive amounts of waste, and contribute heavily to greenhouse gas emissions. Just think, a single surgery in the US produces as much waste as a family of four throws away in a week, and ORs alone are responsible for a whopping 50-70% of a hospital's clinical waste! At Caresyntax, we're committed to making surgery more sustainable. Our data-driven solutions tackle these challenges head-on by supercharging OR efficiency. Our platform optimizes energy use, minimizes waste generation, and streamlines resource management. This not only benefits the environment, but also improves patient outcomes. Caresyntax empowers hospitals to operate more efficiently, leading to a healthier planet and a healthier bottom line. By leveraging data analytics, we've helped partners achieve remarkable results. We're talking about a 60% drop in energy consumption, a 33% increase in surgeries performed per OR annually, and a positive net margin of $2,500 per patient due to fewer readmissions. Let's make surgery more sustainable together. Read the Caresyntax paper for a deeper dive into this critical issue and see how we can help your hospital reduce its environmental footprint. https://lnkd.in/ggM-P6ij #DigitalSurgery #DataDrivenSurgery #FutureofSurgery

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