AgeTech

​HIMSS was canceled – but the briefings went on to shed a light on what’s new.  When a conference of the scale of the largest annual health IT event HIMSS (possible attendance of 45,000 compared to 2019) is canceled, it sends shudders through the world of the entrepreneurs and providers they wanted to meet, solving thorny care delivery problems, finding customers and partners, gaining visibility to unusual and compelling solutions. And it created a big challenge for the multiple PR firms engaged to help create that visibility to innovation in care. Following cancellation, phone calls replaced nearly all 10 scheduled in-person meetings. In addition, HIMSS is in the process of arranging a digital version of HIMSS. In the meantime, Here are some of their updates, in alphabetical order:

Today or soon you will launch a boomer/senior, home health tech product or service, or maybe a caregiver advisory service.  As your company gets ready to travel into battle or a booth with the sound of pitches all around, it is time to for you to revisit this guidance. Perhaps sometime soon, your new or existing company will officially launch a new product or service, or perhaps a long-awaited, over-described and much-anticipated offering will finally ship. First read existing content and research reports on your particular market segment.  Look over this updated checklist that continues to hold true – with updated links and references. If necessary, refine tactics:

AARP recently published several new reports -- all worth a read.  Rant on. The survey reports, about the 50+ gamers and 50+ tech trends, each identify an age band of the 70+, something AARP began a few years ago and kudos to them, that banding continues among some of their research reports.  Not so the Longevity Economy Outlook, which lumps the wealth of the population for those aged 50-100, but no breakout was offered about the spending potential for the population at the higher end of the age bands. From an economic standpoint -- what will they (or their families) spend money on, how is their health, what is the cost of their care, where do they live? Who knows?