Philips betting on remote healthcare for future

By Harro ten Wolde

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Dutch Philips Electronics is betting it can help doctors monitor patients remotely to keep an aging population healthier and battle rising medical costs.

The hospital equipment maker and the Netherlands' largest health insurer, Achmea, said on Wednesday they would work together and invest several millions in the next five years in home monitoring healthcare in the Dutch market.

Home monitoring is at the heart of Philips's home healthcare unit, which reported more than 1 billion euros of revenue in 2008 and is expected to grow at double digit percentage rates in the coming years.

The unit provides services and products that help doctors monitor patients' health remotely but also offers products for people who suffer from respiratory diseases for use at home.

"It is all about expanding care beyond its current boundaries, like the hospital," Walter van Kuijen, general manager at Philips' home monitoring healthcare, told Reuters.

Philips estimates the global home healthcare market at about 100 billion euros, of which the company targets about 5 billion euros.

The company considers the deal with Achmea, which has about a 30 percent share of the Dutch health insurance market, as a pilot project that eventually could be rolled out in Europe, saving hospitals millions of euros.

EuroStat figures show that the population of people over 65 will increase within the 27 countries of the European Union to 50 percent by 2050.