Accenture (NYSE: ACN) today opened the application period for the fifth annual Accenture HealthTech Innovation Challenge, which seeks to support innovative solutions for improving the way people access, receive, manage and finance healthcare in North America.

Now in its fifth year, the Accenture HealthTech Innovation Challenge brings healthcare organizations and start-ups together to tackle the world’s biggest health issues. The industry is at a pivotal moment, and the health leaders of today and tomorrow will be those that can harness the power of technology and human ingenuity to put the human at the heart of everything they do. To apply, health start-ups will find the submission form, including additional details about the challenge’s criteria, eligibility, and requirements at Accenture HealthTech Innovation Challenge.

“Each year we look forward to the new solutions that innovative start-ups develop for healthcare organizations to improve health outcomes and health operations,” said Brian Kalis, managing director of digital health and innovation at Accenture. “The past year the pandemic presented many challenges, but it also accelerated the adoption of digital technology that helped deliver better healthcare experiences for consumers and clinicians. We look forward to exploring the novel ideas that emerging start-ups are bringing to the market.”

“The Accenture HealthTech Innovation Challenge identifies startups who are solving healthcare industry challenges in unique ways,” said Shally Pannikode, SVP and CIO with Humana. “There is an appetite for new ideas and this year’s cohort really have an opportunity to question the status quo with solutions that improve healthcare outcomes.”

Emerging healthcare technology innovators and disruptors that provide their services and solutions in North America are encouraged to apply for the program. Submissions from eligible companies will be accepted through 11:59 p.m. ET on July 2nd. The three categories for this year’s Accenture HealthTech Innovation Challenge are:

• Increased Access: Solutions that can expand access to services and treatments for health organizations. Examples include virtual care, digital therapeutics, home and remote healthcare delivery models, and new care models for underserved needs.
• Consumer & Clinician Experience: Solutions that can create positive consumer and clinician experiences. Consumer experience examples include solutions that improve wellbeing, care coordination, disease prevention and chronic condition management.
• Operational Efficiency: Solutions that look to increase enterprise efficiency and core day-to-day processes. Examples include back office solutions, and patient, data, and distribution management.

Accenture is seeking applications that are focused on healthcare organization buyers. Key criteria for applicants include desirability (customer need), viability (business model), feasibility (scalability), and purpose. Health organizations are defined as public health entities, private payers, provider systems, delivery networks, retail health companies and organizations that participate in the healthcare delivery and payment ecosystem.

Selected finalists will present to an exclusive panel of judges comprised of senior executives from globally recognized health companies at a virtual event to be held on September 28.

About Accenture

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