Health Stories: The Intersection of Blockchain and Healthcare with Nikhil Krishnan and Nick Soman

On this episode of Health Stories, Erik is joined by Nikhil Krishnan (@nikillinit), of CB Insights and Nick Soman (@nicksoman), of Decent.Today they're talking about “the combination of two insanely complex topics.” They start out by discussing the potential applications of blockchain technology in the healthcare space and why it might not be ready for primetime just yet.They dive into some of the applications, including unique patient identifiers and why the lack of a system to transfer records between health providers results in a “ludicrously high number of medical errors.” They also talk about the fact that anonymized health data is often sold without the consent of the patient and that there are billion-dollar companies that advertise on the front page of their websites that they can provide anonymized health data for 500M patients.As with any Health Stories episode, they discuss the distortion of incentives in the healthcare industry. On this episode they discuss the “medical loss ratio” and why it means that “everybody other than the patient makes more money when costs go up.” They point out that healthcare problems aren’t technology problems and are instead distribution and incentives problems. They also tell us that the health industry is the single largest public employer and the single largest lobbyist in the country.They also talk about the possibility of using cryptocurrency in driving behavior change in patients, what the “remember blockchain?” eulogy for the tech might look like in 2030 if it doesn’t pan out, how Apple, Amazon and Google getting involved in the space might change thing, and why days are (hopefully) numbered for companies whose business models are predicated on a lack of trust and transparency.Thanks for listening — if you like what you hear, please review us on your favorite podcast platform. Check us out on the web at villageglobal.vc or get in touch with us on Twitter @villageglobal.Venture Stories is brought to you by Village Global, is hosted by co-founder and partner, Erik Torenberg and is produced by Brett Bolkowy.