Survey claims 59 percent people depend track medical symptoms on apps

Mumbai: Healthcare apps are rapidly gaining popularity in the country with almost 59 percent of the people's usage increasing over the past year to track and monitor their medical symptoms, says a survey.

"Indians are using apps to track and monitor their medical symptoms and improve health. Around 59 percent of the respondents said their use of medical apps and devices increased over the past year," says a survey conducted by health insurer Cigna TTK Health Insurance.

The online survey, involving over 1,500 respondents across 10 cities, is based on five key indices-- physical, financial, work health, family health and social health.

According to the survey, two-thirds of the respondents are willing to share health data with third-parties.

It found that a majority of the people depend on their own savings to fund health emergencies, as almost 62 percent paid for their own medical expenses in 2016.

"While 85 percent are covered by private medical insurance, nearly two-thirds of medical expenses are self- funded. Government and public welfare schemes contribute a paltry 7 percent.

"Employer-provided and self-purchased insurance schemes collectively account for 13 percent, while about 15 percent is not covered by either private or government insurance schemes," it said.

People are concerned about their health, particularly heart disease, diabetes and accidents followed by obesity and sleep disorder, it observed.