Just how many of those things we've had till now? Our next project, Solve.Care, whose star has been rising since 2017, looks for “making healthcare and benefit programs work better for everyone” and “solving complex problems that plague healthcare around the world”. Seriously, how many medical/health/care/snakeoil tokens have to fail and run with investors money or go "bankrupt" of course not delivering a single thing because there is nothing to be delivered here. And if, it will certainly not be via a token. A blockchain is a database, simple as that, you don't need tokens for a blockchain, you don't need tokens for a distributed decentralized database, and you don't need every moron with 10 cents of coins to have a say on how things in healthcare work Solve.Care will probably get a dedicated article (review) So, for your reading pleasure, I will try to seek out the answers to these and other concerns if it ever comes to that (though I can't promise anything yet). To me, it looks a pretty solid project, and there can be legit reasons behind creation of a token. For example, a token as a health record (effectively, an NFT), i.e. not meant to be a cryptocurrency, sort of |
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The Blockchain can be used to store data,but this is not the main problem of the healthcare systems around the world.The pharmaceutical giants and private hospitals,who are profit driven,have to be held responsible for many issues in the healthcare systems It is not only about storing data privately and securely It is rather about the lack of proper coordination between market participants which leads to lots of middlemen that only make the problem worse. Blockchain removes these intermediaries by providing a decentralized and trustless environment that is beneficial to all major participants (other than intermediaries). This is the approach that Solve.Care tries to follow. They seem to be doing it the right way |
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Can blockchain improve the healthcare systems around the world? If you're interested in finding that out, read my new piece on the topic below (and don't forget to share your thoughts). Originally published on stealthex.io
Short VersionAs the Covid-19 pandemic is not going away, modern healthcare has been proving again and again its inefficiency and inefficacy, mostly due to countless intermediaries that make it too costly and clumsy. Blockchain can help in such areas as, for example, electronic health records, patient data management, clinical data exchange and interoperability. Most importantly, we are now facing the problem of digital medical passports and immunity certificates. This is a highly controversial topic which can quickly become our new reality, and a painful one at that – right after masks and social distancing
Full VersionPeople have short memories, which is not a bad thing in itself considering the fact that happiness is good health and a short memory. Today, with the exception of a few historians and half a dozen scientists, no one remembers that in the 14th century the Black Death plague wiped out two-thirds of the Earth’s population within years. So would blockchain be able to stop or at least alleviate the deadliest pandemic ever? We don’t know that, and we can only pray that we would never have to find out in practice. However, we have a new plague – Covid-19, and who knows what is to crop up next and how much life it is going to waste. So there’s still a need to explore the ways in which blockchain can improve the healthcare system and make our lives better despite those nasty minuscule monsters sticking around us and relentlessly trying to make their way in. Blockchain and HealthcareToday’s healthcare environment consists of a few key players such as healthcare providers, pharma manufacturers, and consumers, that is to say, patients, if we can call them players indeed. However, the space is also infested with all kinds of intermediaries collectively known as pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs). Apart from these, there are as well retail pharmacies (your nearby drugstore) and drug wholesalers – distributors who purchase large quantities of medications directly from manufacturers or bigger wholesalers and then sell them at a profit to pharmacies or smaller wholesalers. It seems unlikely that human beings are going to become totally healthy all of a sudden and not susceptible to the whole range of illnesses, disorders and other medical conditions. With that in mind, the healthcare system as a whole is going to stay around in the foreseeable future. Blockchain won’t be able to free us from healthcare providers, drug manufacturers, and, alas, patients either. Fortunately, the benefits of blockchain technologies and smart contracts are still pretty impressive to make it worth the effort of introducing and putting them to work for the common good, healthcare included. Blockchain could remove a number of middlemen that only add complexity to the system resulting in higher prices of medical care. This mostly refers to pharmacy benefit managers, a thoroughly obscured part of healthcare finance. It is a numerous group of middlemen that in many cases can be safely disposed of through technical innovation. Ironically, in 2017 the largest American PBMs had booked higher profits than the largest pharmaceutical manufacturers, which clearly demonstrates the potential of blockchain in this field of healthcare and the amount of the taxpayer’s money that can be saved here. By area of application, blockchain can help reduce costs in electronic health records (EHRs) and patient data management, clinical data exchange and interoperability, supply chain management, digital medical passports and immunity certificates (particularly useful in times like these), health plan claims and insurance in general, among many other areas. In the following section we are going to take a closer look at what blockchain already brings to the healthcare table. So is there anything real yet?It’s little wonder that in the times of the coronavirus reigning supreme, with faces behind masks, empty streets, parks and stadiums, the idea of improving the healthcare system via blockchain got so wide a traction in today’s world. Below we are going to discuss a couple of projects that are focused on improving access to healthcare and administering it more efficiently for the sake of reducing its costs. As outlined above, there are many fields where there is a job for blockchain, so these are just two examples from a much longer list of new projects currently active or being bootstrapped in this space. One of these projects is Patientory, with its mission to make healthcare more affordable and accessible to everyone. The project features a mobile app that provides its users with a secure platform to access, manage, and share their health data. At its heart, it is an effort to change how doctors and patients interact by removing unnecessary layers and processes that get in the way of this interaction. Simply put, it strives to empower patients, both existing and potential, to take charge of their health. So how can the Patientory app facilitate this effort by utilizing the blockchain stuff? In brief, Patientory employs blockchain as a secure means to store and share EHRs between patients and healthcare providers – doctors and hospitals, in the vast majority of cases. The Patientory app allows its users to collect in one place and share when required their complete medical histories aggregated across different providers and medical facilities over time. You can think of it as your digital health passport. To make it a viable business model, Patientory introduced PTOY, a utility token with which users can buy storage on the blockchain network as well as execute smart contracts for payment. Our next project, Solve.Care, whose star has been rising since 2017, looks for “making healthcare and benefit programs work better for everyone” and “solving complex problems that plague healthcare around the world”. So how is it going to do all that and what leverage can the blockchain tech offer to help accomplish these noble goals? In a nutshell, the project follows a patient-centric approach that tries to bring together the requisite elements of modern healthcare – clinical, administrative, and financial. In practice, that means coordinating the activities of insurance companies and government agencies, healthcare providers and benefit managers, pharmacies and manufacturers. As you may have already guessed, at Solve.Care blockchain serves as the basis for putting all these diverse pieces together to remove the stumbling blocks in care coordination. This is a daunting task on its own and also the primary reason why healthcare systems around the world are so incredibly complex, ineffective, and, most importantly, failing nowadays. In this vein, blockchain may be exactly what the doctor ordered (pardon the pun) as it is well equipped to tame these goliaths. To get there, Solve.Care developed the SOLVE token, a utility token to power the decentralized Solve.Care platform through which the market participants can coordinate their efforts without friction, hassle, and lots of overhead costs. And when you think about it, it makes perfect sense. That’s why Solve.Care was awarded the Most Innovative Blockchain Project Award at the Blockchain Life 2019 Forum in Singapore. Now fast forward to 2020 where the contemporary healthcare systems are hopelessly losing their battle against the coronavirus, and you will start to see the real value that the blockchain tech can bring to the industry. Future ProspectsThe Covid-19 pandemic is set to make drastic changes in the healthcare systems around the world. In fact, these changes are already well underway. For example, the proposal to create digital medical passports and immunity certificates is not entirely new, but these days it is no longer a theoretical construct despite being highly controversial. Quite a few projects are now in the process of designing working prototypes, with some already being tested in practice. The basic idea behind health passports is to produce a verified health status of an individual so that people will be able to access crowded public locations like stadiums and airports. Right, it is not anymore just about wearing masks. And if this push becomes overwhelming and takes roots, which may well be the case, blockchain is definitely capable of delivering a trustless and secure environment for it. So let’s keep our fingers crossed! |
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 I'm writing a book about hurricanes and tornadoes... It's only a draft at the moment |
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 We used to have empires run by emperors and kingdoms run by kings... Now we have countries |
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 Police were called to a daycare where a 3 year old was resisting a rest |
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And speaking of cards how will that work, you're going to entrust all your cryptos back to the government, under the disguise of card, web wallets, and other? Are you sure you actually want to tell me how bad a crypto payment card is? If you are using Binance, you are already entrusting them with your cryptos. Moreover, if their card stops working due to Visa pushing a button, the damage would still be limited to the card only, not your coins on the exchange itself. Further, no one prevents you from continuing to use your personal wallet topping up your account as required. It looks more like you have a grudge against either Binance or payment cards in general, or both, or whatever |
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Do you know what was special about the 2014 crash? It felt totally out of the blue and because of that was particularly eerie. The 1998 crash was instant, and it had immediate causes. The crash of 2014 was caused by sanctions imposed and a few other factors. But it had taken a few months before that crash commenced. That's why I tell people to buckle up now And do you know what's not special about this crash? That everything was crashing all over, the ruble didn't die when the USSR went down, it didn't in all other occasions mentioned, and it won't know when almost all currencies that are tied to some specific types of exports or financial transactions or tourism are in trouble, and Russia is simply bleeding money with the oil prices, nothing new. No, there won't be any crash nor will be adoption as quickly as you assume Okay, the ruble lost 99.9999% of its value since the Soviet times (if we allow for a few denominations along the way), and it didn't die. So does that make it a good store of value, according to you? Or would you be better off by simply holding Bitcoin all that time? Kidding aside, there were several currency reforms since the collapse of the Soviet Union, with some money confiscated in the process. So, in technical terms, the ruble of 1991 is not the same as the ruble of 2020 (and that of 1914, while we are at it). They only share the name. In more mundane terms, it means the ruble has already died a couple times in the very least (and then restarted as a new currency, see Weimar Republic and their gold reichsmark) So again, how could a payment method that runs on Visa and Mastercard survive from a legislative attack coming from a government that wants to prevent usage of cryptos in its jurisdiction? It can't survive. But that doesn't mean a crypto payment card can't be a good means of payment when it doesn't have to. In simple terms, you miss the point. Regardless, any cashless payments can be downed as easily, crypto or otherwise. Whole countries can be switched off from fiat payment channels at the press of a button (see Iran) |
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I don't think gaming can drive crypto adoption, but it is a realm where blockchain technology makes a lot of sense and thus it will play a good role in cryptoversum in the future. I saw some people comparing gaming with gambling and pointing out how gambling drives crypto adoption a bit - but I am not sold on this Well, things may have changed since then, but: In April 2012, Erik Voorhees, an American entrepreneur and early Bitcoin adopter, founded Satoshi Dice, arguably the oldest online cryptocasino on the block, which is still pretty much alive today, although Voorhees sold it in a year. What makes it truly intriguing is the fact that during its early years the casino was generating half of all the transactions on the Bitcoin network. In short, online gambling was critically important in Bitcoin’s infancy years as it helped promote cryptocurrency awareness that led to future growth and expansion into other areas |
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 Today I went for a walk with a girl, she noticed me, so we went for a run |
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The Russian ruble lost like 30% against the dollar during this year
And it lost 60% in 2014 and the country and the ruble are still there We are not done yet Do you know what was special about the 2014 crash? It felt totally out of the blue and because of that was particularly eerie. The 1998 crash was instant, and it had immediate causes. The crash of 2014 was caused by sanctions imposed and a few other factors. But it had taken a few months before that crash commenced. That's why I tell people to buckle up now To conclude, we must be aware that once things get serious and governments see that their monetary supremacy is being threatened, that they can no longer play their favorite game of inflation tax, they will leave no stone unturned to prevent mass use of crypto as an alternative means of payment. And cryptocurrency payment cards are hands down one of the best tools available for this use on a down-to-earth level, groceries and whatnot You realize that all bitcoin cards are running on Visa and Mastercard's infrastructure, one push of a button and all are rendered useless, remember WaveCrest? And? Does it take anything from cryptocurrency payment cards potentially being as handy and convenient as fiat ones, aside from being the exact reason why they were outlawed in the end? |
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... You asked  |
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Under the current circumstances of fiat currencies falling apart (we have just begun), the launch of the Binance payment card can greatly facilitate cryptocurrency adoption (as a means of payment), at least as far as altcoins are concerned (e.g. Litecoin). Focusing on the mainstream launches, payment card isn't new concept and many of the projects are already issuing such cards. Well let us consider that Binance is popular platform and user base for this payment concept would be pretty great as compared to others. However, there is huge crowd on the platform who doesn't care about the features like this. Consider the factors like underdeveloped countries, developing countries being the biggest crowd on the platform. > Obviously this is based on my assumptions but it seems reasonable. And even if the concept is not quite new, it is the details that count, i.e. how much you have to pay for the card service. Because Binance doesn't charge anything (or so they say), this alone removes the majority of such cards from consideration where you have to pay an inadequate monthly/yearly fee If the card proves convenient, cheap, and actually usable in terms of a daily shopping routine, it may turn out a game-changer after all, and still more so if Binance competitors will have no other choice but to come up with something similar or even better This is what concerns me when I stated that it may get limited to shorter crowd. I mean ho wmany countries does have BTC or ALT coin payment solution available? Or may be acceptable by the local community? Binance is the largest cryptocurrency exchange out there, and as such, it is a successful business, so the only thing that would stop them is the government regulation effectively banning this card. I wrote about that The world reserve fiat, the American dollar, is sinking like Titanic, slowly but surely. We can’t say the same about less lucky currencies, though. We won’t dwell on the Venezuelan bolivar and Zimbabwean dollar as they are altogether beyond redemption, but fiats like the Brazilian real and Russian ruble are also balancing on the brink of another landslide devaluation, which they have seen many in the past Definitely USD is falling apart and if the reserves are not reset to the original value / volume / output then it will give opportunity to rest of the currencies to come up in the market. However this will only happen if those rest of the countries make that much efforts for it The American dollar will be the last to kick the bucket. And if the dollar goes downhill, the total majority of other fiat currencies will be going downhill twice as fast barring, maybe, the Swiss franc or Euro, to a degree. I think there is no use in trying to rationally challenge this point since this is already the case Sharp minds in the cryptocurrency space have been telling us about this development for ages. It all looked like a remote possibility in some distant future that as we felt deep down wouldn’t have a chance to come up in our lifetime Indeed correct. It was the long vision of creators who had Plan-BTC. They knew it, one day the economic collapse will imbalance world's largest currencies and that's what happening. It's agreeable statement. The only path that went wrong is, crypto currencies got wrong identity and they became instrument of trading and cold storage stuff. But none of them though about it as real currency for day-to-day life That's why we need a trigger in the form of runaway inflation and a means to deal with it on a day-to-day basis -- Binance payment card or any other such card as handy, cheap and reliable As it stands, we were wrong, and the events described are now starting to unfold right before our own eyes. In a strange twist of fate, large-scale cryptocurrency adoption is about to occur along with them, but not through some technical breakthroughs and innovation, or even the much-hyped DeFi, but primarily through the failure of conventional financial systems based on fiat currencies. Rest assured, the top dogs in the cryptocurrency pit are well aware of this dynamic, and they are not going to wait any longer But again are they willing to invest their fat wallet money into the development of complex infra to run the bitcoin payment system like those traditional one? Or will they just look forward to make more bunch of billions and tan themselves on Bahama beaches!! It doesn't really matter because they still show us how things are going to unfold It might read very skeptical but I am trying to judge this phenomenon based on what we have seen until now for the bitcoin. DeFi is result of something that was alternative to a failure as you stated, will it be long lasting? DeFi is massively overhyped and it won't lead to mass adoption for the simple reason it is the same money that gets moved around In the long run this makes crypto look like asset for investment and nothing more You wouldn't invest in something that is going to lose value, right? Further, there's a lot more to it, and a good payment card opens access to the wealth of possibilities thereof But what truly makes it a game-changer is the current turmoil in the global economic affairs which may turn out to be a once-in-a-lifetime chance for crypto to pick up where fiat currencies leave, or fail, to be exact. Do we really think this way? I am sure we are forgetting one thing, crypto world does not share itself with the whole world. What I mean is, crypto users are limited, it's institutional usage is growing but with limited speed/resources Who cares? If crypto makes your life better, then go for it. You can take the horse to the water, but you can't make him drink So far the vast majority of people involved in crypto, including its most die-hard supporters, valued their cryptocurrency holdings in fiat terms. Without doubt, it was the US dollar, regardless of your home currency. But when fiat collapses or enters a long period of runaway inflation, people will be ready for a dramatic change in their approaches toward capital assessment as well as spending habits. The question is why not gold or oil then? Because you can't spend gold or oil as easily as fiat (and I would discard oil). Payment cards, done the right way, allow you to spend crypto in pretty much the same way as fiat. And you can also ride volatility as a nice bonus With Binance payment card, you can “buy the things you love with crypto”. So now the ball is in your court to support the full-scale cryptocurrency adoption coming up. I can't wait to see this coming and taking a card to my local store and swipe it right away. But what is the competency of Binance in my country, how are the thing on that front. At one site my Government is stating Bitcoin would be made illegal soon so I would be afraid to even swipe that crypto based card and avoid a day dream crime That's the only plausible reason why this effort might fail |
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