Written by the Govini Team
Hamstrung by long wait times and inefficiency in recent years, the Department of Veterans Affairs Telehealth initiative promises to fundamentally transform Healthcare services in the twenty-first century. Already a leader in telemedicine, the VA seeks to drastically expand Healthcare to Veterans at home and on the move, a health initiative now coined “anywhere-to-anywhere.”
For the Federal IT market, Telehealth bucks expectations as a principally hardware centric initiative. Federal data underscores tele-enabled instruments and equipment as a thriving market segment with a 7% annual growth rate since the 2012 fiscal year. As of September 2017, tele-enabled hardware represents 67%, or approximately $74M, of the Department’s total Telehealth spending.
Surprisingly, systems design and software has significantly trailed hardware spending, despite the Telehealth initiative’s emphasis on nationwide connectivity, accessibility, and improved data management. Since FY12, systems design and support services spending has declined at -3% and -4% annual growth rates respectively.
Telehealth procurement methods also defy expectations. Currently, Telehealth spending heavily favors large stand-alone contracts over traditional BPAs or technologically purposed vehicles, such as T4 or T4NG. Among the top ten contracts, stand-alones represent approximately $460M, or 75% of Telehealth-related spending since FY12.
[su_pullquote align=”right”]Current data indicates that tele-enabled hardware will remain the dominant segment, as 2017 year-to-date spending is already 154% above FY16 levels.[/su_pullquote]Looking Forward
VA Telehealth is expected to expand significantly in the immediate future. The Trump Administration recently championed the expansion of Telehealth services, and the initiative is well suited to serve new generations of Veterans.
Current data indicates that tele-enabled hardware will remain the dominant segment, as 2017 year-to-date spending is already 154% above FY16 levels.
The hardware-centric approach to Telehealth has been cautious to date. Systems design and software to improve the Telehealth network may be the key long-term solution to enable roll-outs nationwide.
About Govini: Govini is a big data and analytics firm committed to transforming the business of Government through data science. The company’s insights and analyses are utilized by Federal Contractors, Federal Agencies, Private Equity Firms and Hedge Funds to guide their strategies and uncover opportunities.
*Photo credit: Jeff Cooper
