It's tough to imagine a world where you can exactly see the cost of the visit to a doctor by just a push of a button. But, Mario Schlosser, founder of insurer Oscar Health, believes that a lot more is possible as Alphabet, Google’s parent, has invested another $375 million in his company. Along with telehealth, many inventions have been making considerable contributions to the field of healthcare.
Capital G which is Alphabet’s subsidiary has invested $32.5 million in Oscar Health in 2015 and in its life sciences, division Verily invested $165 million in it this year. The CEO announced that Oscar will enter the Medicare Advantage market in 2020. At present, the company offers ACA exchange plans in six states and employer coverage too.
Oscar plans to reduce costs for patients and improve clinical outcomes by utilizing data in novel, technologically advanced ways. Schlosser spoke about transmitting data in real time, using Artificial Intelligence to process claims and advancing user engagement on an app- perhaps this is one of the reasons why Alphabet found potential in Oscar.
Schlosser said that Alphabet is primarily a financial investor, so it will have no access to patient data.