New study examines the growing market for connected medical devices and virtual visits/remote monitoring at home

A new Parks Associates study finds retail is a small but growing sales channel for connected medical devices, as 41% of owners (6% of all US broadband households) bought at least one of these devices online or at a store. The types of devices most frequently bought at retail include Wi-Fi weight scales and smart thermometers.

Virtual Care and Remote Monitoring: Connected Health at Home explores trends in virtual care and telehealth, including strategies to expand consumer adoption of these solutions.The research examines the growing market of connected medical devices and assesses opportunities at the juncture of healthcare and home, including virtual visit services and remote patient monitoring programs.

“Retailers including CVS, Sam’s Club, and Best Buy have all entered the telehealth space, and Amazon announced Amazon Care this year as its direct-to-consumer online virtual care platform,” said Jennifer Kent, Senior Director, Parks Associates. “Retailers are in a position to impact the market for virtual care substantially, and data collected from connected health devices could be used during a telehealth consultation to deliver greater insight to both the patient and provider.”

Currently, the majority of consumers acquire their connected medical devices through care providers, specialty medical equipment storefronts, or online marketplaces approved by their insurance plans. Both adoption of connected medical devices and usage of telehealth services remain low overall, especially compared to connected wellness devices such as wearables, but these markets will benefit from the attention garnered by the entry of new players and low-risk trials.

“Only 15% of US broadband households report used a telehealth service in the past 12 months, but the usage rate nearly doubled between 2017 and 2019,” Kent said. “Once users try a service, they better understand the value proposition. Retailers like Sam’s Club have bundled telehealth visits with additional healthcare services, which will encourage more consumers to at least trial telehealth.”

Additional research findings include:

• One-third of consumers are interested in using wearables to monitor their health.
• 75% of wireless glucometer owners feel connected features are worth the additional costs versus 60% of smart blood pressure cuff owners.
• About 30% of consumers ages 18-35 are “very interested” in remote monitoring of connected health devices that provides insights and early warning of health problems.

To request data or an interview, please contact Sherrelle Lewis at sherrelle.lewis@parksassociates.com, 972-996-0214.

About Parks Associates

Parks Associates, a woman-founded and certified business, is an internationally recognized market research and consulting company specializing in emerging consumer technology products and services. Founded in 1986, Parks Associates provides business intelligence and research services through its proprietary methodologies developed over decades, including quarterly surveys of 10,000 internet households.

The company's expertise crosses many industries: home security and smart home, streaming video, broadband and pay-TV services, digital media and platforms, gaming, Wi-Fi and home networks, connected health, support, consumer electronics, home control systems, energy management, and tech solutions for the multi-dwelling (MDU), small-to-medium business (SMB), and commercial building markets.

Each year, Parks Associates brings thousands of leaders together for its webinars and annual events. The firm hosts the annual executive research and strategy conferences CONNECTIONS™, Connected Health Summit, Smart Energy Summit, Smart Spaces, and Future of Video. https://www.parksassociates.com

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