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One solution to declining populations of primary care physicians is a smartphone app created by Seattle-based 98point6. The service involves “providing virtual text-based primary care across the entire country, 24/7 of everyday,” explained Brad Younggren, MD, an emergency physician and Chief Medical Officer at 98point6.

Sutter Health | Aetna’s custom 98point6 platform will allow members to text, talk, or video chat with board-certified doctors 27/7. Doctors can then write prescriptions, suggest in-network referrals for other services or specialists, or order labs.

Robbie Cape, CEO of 98point6, had to face failure at Microsoft before he took the leap to launch his entrepreneurial career. He said that if he had succeeded on that project, “it would have been much harder to leave Microsoft.”

Virtual primary care provider 98point6 is partnering with Seattle-based First Choice Health to increase access to primary care options.

The deal makes 98point6’s telehealth platform available to self-funded employers utilizing First Choice’s health network, allowing covered employees to access on-demand primary care services ― such as consultation, diagnosis and treatment ― via their phones.

The first Seattle startup we selected is driven by a vision to make primary care accessible and affordable to more people, even those without health insurance.

At Barcelona’s San Raffaele hospital, researchers are developing 5G-equipped ambulances that will allow remote specialists to view a patient in real time and deliver instructions as efficiently as if they were in the vehicle.

“From an early age I was passionate about health and technology. Primary care is the frontline of health care. Through routine check-ups and continuous care, many potentially serious problems can be diagnosed and prevented early,” says 98point6 CEO, Robbie Cape.