A simple selfie saved Tim Krause’s life.
Last year, the 79-year-old from Pittsburgh had noticed a scaly red patch just above his jawline. He didn’t think much of it at first, but it grew larger and shaving became difficult.
Normally, Tim would’ve gone to his doctor’s office to get it checked out. But like most clinics, his was closed for regular appointments because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
So, Tim’s doctor found a workaround. She had him take a few selfies of his face and send them to her. And during their follow-up call, she told him he’d need a biopsy right away.
The day after Tim’s biopsy, his phone rang. And the news was bad: It was melanoma.
If not caught early enough, this kind of skin cancer has only a 1-in-4 survival rate. Luckily, in Tim’s case, his selfies helped speed up his diagnosis.
Most people probably don’t think twice when taking a selfie … let alone think that it might one day save their life.
But this is just one of many ways that the “Internet of Things” — or IoT — technology is changing the way we live.
IoT is simply the connection of devices through networks. It’s the technology that helps power video calls for remote work and learning … streaming services on our smart TVs … and the tracking and logistics for e-commerce deliveries.
These are all things we take for granted that have become essential to our daily lives, especially during the pandemic as we navigate the new normal.
Now, it’s easy to see in hindsight how investors have made tons of money from the IoT mega trend — through companies like Zoom Technologies, Netflix and Amazon.
But the good news is that the next life-changing area of IoT — the one that saved Tim’s life — is just starting to grow. And that gives us the opportunity to invest in the companies that will lead the way…
Medicine Will Need to Keep Adapting
IoT has clearly transformed many industries already. But the industry I believe it’ll grow the fastest in this year is health care and medicine.
The COVID-19 pandemic has no doubt accelerated our need for telemedicine. Tim Krause’s story is just one example.
Even my team and I have been using remote options to get our prescriptions filled and delivered, see our doctors and more. And I’m sure you and your loved ones have used these services over the past year as well.
But even without this added pandemic tailwind, there’s another that we’ve been talking about in American Investor Today for a while…
Americans are getting older. Baby boomers continue to age. And the number of adults aged 65 or over is projected to increase by almost 18 million in the next 10 years alone.
That’s why health care is always on my radar. Not much can derail an aging population. No economic event can shatter it.
The bottom line is that the need for medical services is continuing to increase every year.
And IoT technology will be vital in helping cut costs for these services and ultimately save millions of lives…
There’s No Going Back
First, IoT will make traditional processes and devices obsolete.
Health care records are increasingly being digitized. Electronic access to medical histories will help doctors treat patients quicker.
And new surgical and imaging devices are being developed. A handheld ultrasound device has been created that can function almost as well as a CT machine. And the Food and Drug Administration cleared a mobile EKG monitor that connects to your smartphone to deliver images in just 30 seconds.
So, scans that are usually very expensive and take time to access could soon cost a fraction and be done during routine checkups or at-home visits. Doctors will be able to catch early signs of chronic conditions before they cause permanent harm or death.
And second, there’s no going back from telemedicine. The genie has already been let out of the bottle.
Thanks to COVID-19, the days of sitting in a waiting room with other sick people are largely over. Now, doctors are beginning to fear that if they don’t offer telemedicine options, patients like me, you and Tim Krause may go elsewhere to find ones who do.
Even insurance companies are catching on. They’re starting to cover more remote care because it reduces expensive hospital stays and ER visits — which will save patients out-of-pocket costs. For example, insurer Oscar Health recently announced that it’ll offer 100% free primary care televisits.
In the long run, IoT could have a massive global economic impact of $1.6 trillion by 2025. And I’ve found the best stock that’ll take advantage of this trend.
It’s a company that has already helped health care facilities expand their telehealth services by more than 100-fold in some cases. And telemedicine is just a part of what it does. It’s also leading the way in remote monitoring by providing services and apps that let doctors monitor patient progress at home.
As the largest global provider of healthcare tech solutions, it’s tapping into an industry with surging demand and has a great CEO at the helm.
And later this week, I’ll be revealing the name of this company to my subscribers in my new special report. It could hand them triple-digit gains in the years ahead. So, to be sure you don’t miss out on this opportunity, you’ll want to join them in becoming an Alpha Investor today.
Regards,
Founder, Alpha Investor