Great healthcare options aren’t dead

The uncertainty swirling around the Affordable Care Act (ACA) – otherwise known as Obamacare – has reached such a fever pitch that many wonder whether the problems with the American healthcare system are too immutable to change.

We would respond by saying absolutely not. While the current healthcare environment certainly has challenges, there are still a ton of opportunities for patients, providers, payers, and investors. Regardless of what happens in Washington, the U.S. healthcare system will continue to evolve, and we need to remain optimistic about the future.

Take demographics as one example. Like so many rich, industrialized countries across the globe, the U.S. population is aging. In 1960, the median male age was 29.5 years. Today that number is 37.9. By 2030, it will reach 40.

As our population ages, healthcare services will naturally expand to keep up. As technology continues to reshape our lives, the desire to find more efficient ways to deliver healthcare services will likewise increase.

Speaking of technology, there’s your second major pervasive element in healthcare. Thanks to across-the-board advances in healthcare technology, no amount of Congressional inaction will hold back major health industry advances.

There is such a wealth of tools and information available to both doctors and physicians that well-informed medical decisions are far easier to come by. From apps to wearable devices and other advanced computing hardware, the future of healthcare will be driven by an electromagnetic current.

While healthcare uncertainty will remain, the outcome of the ACA battle should have little material effect on the effectiveness of our healthcare system and that is a very, very good thing.