A blockchain, originally blockchain, is a growing list of records, called blocks, which are interconnected through cryptographic functions. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of the previous block, a timestamp and transaction data. Blockchain in the healthcare market is the application of this particular technology in the healthcare sector. The global blockchain in healthcare market was valued at $110.30 million in 2018 & is estimated to generate net revenue of approximately $3747.46 million by 2027, growing at a CAGR of 47.23%.  The base year considered for the study is 2018 and the estimated period is between 2019 and 2027. The following factors drive the growth of this market:

• Cost savings
• Protection from cyber-attacks and transparency
• Consortiums and blockchain working groups
• Government partnerships

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The most important driver is the protection from cyber-attacks and transparency. By allowing an even flow of information and data over a shared database, blockchain wipes out information asymmetry and levels the knowledge of all parties involved.

Moreover, each time exchange of information or money occurs over a blockchain, the entire history of the transactions is encrypted and stored in the blockchain database and can later be followed through the blockchain. The technology completely puts an end to the costs involved with tracking down transaction history, ownership disputes and fraudulent activities involved via transactions. Blockchain makes it possible to have accurate records that are capable of identifying transfers, ownership, rights of each member and evidence for each respective transaction. Changes made to blockchain are viewable by all parties creating collective transparency, and all transactions are ineradicable, which means they cannot be altered or deleted. Thus, blockchain technology properties do not allow cyber-attacks and ensure transparency, which is the major reason why the healthcare industry is adopting the technology.

The largest segment by blockchain type is the public. The public blockchain is an open-source platform where anyone on the platform can read, write, make transactions or participate in the consensus process (the process of determining whether the transaction can be added to the block or not). The public blockchain is fully decentralized. This type of blockchain is preferred when different companies or business divisions have similar priorities. The fastest-growing segment by blockchain type is hybrid. It is a mix of both public and private blockchain. In this type, the institutions create their network, but the right to read and write is extended to a certain number of nodes only. It combines the advantages of both public and private blockchains. It has better performance results as compared to public blockchains as it controls the number of nodes on the chain, maintaining the computational efficiency of the chain.

The lack of skilled professionals, the absence of common standards, the tradeoff between cost and security, minimal public awareness, lack of storage capability and the most important limitation- lack of skilled professionals, are some of the challenges and restraints which are withholding the market growth. The sudden emergence of blockchain-based solutions has an abrupt surge in demand for blockchain-based skills, but due to a shortage of talent, companies struggle to meet their need for blockchain knowledge. Blockchain development requires an exceedingly far-reaching skill set that includes a combination of expertise in app development, security, and engineering. Companies are looking at various ways to reduce the talent gap such as in-house training, outsourcing projects, and others. IBM, for instance, offers in-house training and personalized online training for employees who work in the blockchain, or for those employees who are inclined to work in this domain.

The report on global blockchain in healthcare includes segmentation on the basis of organization size, blockchain type, and application.

Organization Size is sub-segmented into:

• Large enterprises
• Small & medium-sized enterprises

Blockchain Type is sub-segmented into:

• Public
• Private
• Hybrid

Application is sub-segmented into:

• Healthcare data exchange
• Pharmaceuticals supply chain
• Health insurance
• Drug discovery
• Identity & authentication
• Other application

Geographically, the global blockchain in the healthcare market has been segmented by four major regions, which are:

• Blockchain in Healthcare North America Market: the United States & Canada
• Blockchain in Healthcare Europe Market: Germany, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, Rest of Europe
• Blockchain in Healthcare Asia Pacific Market: China, India, Japan, Australia, South Korea, Rest of Asia Pacific
• Rest of World: Latin America, Middle East & Africa

North America is the largest as well as the fastest-growing market for blockchain in the healthcare market. The North American region has two main countries the United States and Canada. North America has a comparatively huge market for the blockchain in the healthcare market. The region is technologically advanced with upgraded IT infrastructure in its place. Also, the healthcare industry is growing with an increasing amount of data in their system. The complicated task of recording, updating and securing such big data is resolved by using the blockchain technology. Nevertheless, there are regulatory concerns while implementing such technology in this region.

The major market players of the global blockchain in healthcare market are:

• International Business Machines
• Microsoft Corporation
• Change Healthcare
• Chronicled, Inc.
• Farmatrust
• Others

Company Profiles covers the analysis of important players. These companies are using organic and inorganic strategies for growth. For instance, in November 2018, IBM and VMware, Inc. announced new offerings to help accelerate enterprise hybrid cloud adoption. In February 2018, Hashed Health collaborated with ODH Inc. to develop blockchain and distributed ledger technologies for payers and providers with the goal of improving patient care. In January 2018, Change Healthcare launched its blockchain based Intelligent Healthcare Network which is providing transparency in the claims management process. In February 2017, Factom, Inc. received $199,980 from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) as part of phase 2 of the Silicon Valley Innovation Program (SVIP).

Key Findings of the global Industrial salts market.

• The surge in the investments in blockchain technology
• The market is observing a high number of startups
• Identity and authentication is the fastest-growing segment by application
• Blockchain can solve patient matching problems
• Blockchain can reduce the cost of healthcare
• The third-largest cause of death in the United States is the prevalence of medical errors which can be avoided by blockchain technology