Cryptocurrency and blockchain technology hold the potential to change the healthcare system as we know it today. Centralized systems and regulated payment methods could soon co-exist with decentralized options. This development has already started to unfold in both New York and Israel. Todos Medical Ltd., a commercial in vitro diagnostics company, announced it was accepting cryptocurrency payments for two of its “wellness products.”
A new landscape
Alongside more traditional payment methods, Todos Medical confirmed it would accept Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Dogecoin (DOGE), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and Litecoin (LTC) from customers buying its “dietary supplement products” authorized for sale in the USA. The company confirmed that customers could pay in the specified cryptocurrencies via Coinbase Commerce. Todos Medical is based in Israel, but has an office in the USA.
Todos Medical is not the only medical company exploring the crypto landscape. This month, in the United Arab Emirates, an aesthetics clinic called Skin111 Clinic announced a partnership with the blockchain-based company Idoneus. The deal would allow Skin111 Clinic clients to pay for treatments using Idoneus’ IDON tokens.
Tapping huge markets
For international medical suppliers, cryptocurrencies could greatly reduce the cost of overseas remittances. As per Statista, the size of the global dietary supplements market was $191 billion in 2020. An estimate for 2028 put the value at $308 billion.
Regulating the future
How will international regulators react to medical companies offering crypto payment options? The United States Securities and Exchange Commission [SEC] had already set its sights on Coinbase due to its crypto-product Lend. Coinbase is only one among many crypto-organizations that have been facing regulatory action in the U.S. Further, the UK’s Financial Conduct Authority [FCA] Chairman Charles Randell recently made statements criticizing cryptocurrencies. In fact several regulatory bodies in other parts of the world have been cracking down on the cryptocurrency industry as a whole.
Based on these circumstances, it seems unlikely that medical companies’ foray into the crypto sector will pass unnoticed for long.
