October 27, 2020
Juniper Research reports a new study has found that the number of people using digital therapeutics and wellness apps will grow from 627 million in 2020 to more than 1.4 billion in 2025, after regulators responded to COVID-19 by loosening rules that had previously hindered the work of digital therapeutics developers.
Juniper Research notes the study also revealed that by 2021, over 44 million people will be using digital therapeutics to manage their healthcare. This is an increase of 288% over pre-pandemic usage levels in 2019; suggesting that digital therapeutics and wellness apps have become a lifeline for many people during the pandemic, as they were unable to leave their homes to receive help maintaining their physical and mental health.
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Expansion of Reimbursement Structures Driving Adoption in the US
The new report, Digital Therapeutics & Wellness: Disruption, Innovation Opportunities & Market Size 2020-2025, notes that following the advent of the pandemic, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) expanded the range of telehealth services available to the 40+ million beneficiaries of Medicare in the US. Between this and the aforementioned uptake in adoption by consumers, we anticipate that by 2025, an expected 652 million people globally will manage their healthcare through digital therapeutics; making them a key element of future health service delivery.
By opening up digital therapeutics to Medicare, public health providers will become one of the biggest contributors to digital therapeutics revenue in 2025, to the tune of $19 billion globally.
Health Insurers and Employers Contributing Majority of Future Revenue
With this broadening awareness, Juniper Research expects the value of the digital therapeutics and wellness market to grow from an expected $5.8 billion in 2020 to over $56 billion in 2025. This growth will be largely fed by acceptance of digital therapeutics technologies by institutions like health insurers and employer payers, who are expected to contribute over half of the digital therapeutics revenue.