Bobby Huffaker is the Founder & Chairman of Directive Health. His passion for making healthcare actually work for people is contagious. He surrounds himself with industry experts that care about making the world a better place. He is a visionary, philanthropist, serial entrepreneur, and our north star. Dear readers, meet Bobby.
Name
Bobby Huffaker
Role with Directive Health
Founder and Chairman of the Board
Where are you based?
Chattanooga TN
How did you come up with this business idea?
Dr. Richard Sprouse, a friend and vascular surgeon was discussing how frustrated he was with his patients and that they did not know or have access to their healthcare history. He proceeded to say that if they could access that data on demand he could see more patients, provide better care, and improve health outcomes. It was that conversation that started the idea for Directive Health.
Why is now the right time for DH to launch a mobile tool for healthcare?
The 21st Century Cures Act was recently passed into law. It mandates healthcare facilities and providers to release healthcare data when requested by the patient or face major penalties and reduced Medicare reimbursement. The law goes into effect October 5th of 2022. The idea and timing of the law positioned and motivated me to raise capital and launch DH next to American Exchange, our sister company. We will be in a unique place to advocate for the patient instead of the provider. I believe the healthcare system forces the patient to rely on the provider and I hope our application can help put more power in the patient’s hands.
Once we have provided instant access to healthcare data system wide(to patients and providers), we plan to add services and features that help the patient understand how to consume healthcare in a way that is beneficial to them. The services and tools we plan to add to our software will be interactive and educate the consumer so they will navigate the healthcare system in a way that reduces cost and improves health outcomes. We want the application to be interactive enough where they naturally consume healthcare in the right way. We plan to accomplish this by making it user friendly and having a concierge team of healthcare experts that are there to assist at all times.
Why is the team uniquely capable of executing in this industry?
I have no doubt that the team organized to lead Directive Health is the right fit to take our product to market. We have several members who have exited businesses and grown businesses from infancy. Most of the people in our team have worked together before and in the few months it has been a joy to see how well everyone gets along and pushes one another as we work towards our launch date. Throughout the growth of my previous business American Exchange, I have learned how important culture can be for an organization. I hear this group use the word family all the time and it makes me proud to see everyone working to make this company a reality. In this phase of our business, it is not just culture that is key but it is important that everyone sees the vision as well. I’m confident the reason we are working productively is the team knows we can make the vision a reality, and excited to see it through to fruition.
What are you most excited for at DH?
The patient advocacy piece is what gets me most excited. Throughout my career at American Exchange I have seen the frustration of consumers trying to navigate a health insurance plan and the healthcare system. By integrating the patient data for the consumer we can use this data to help the patient make informed decisions and improve their health outcomes. This in turn will reduce healthcare costs and save lives. It’s not just the patient advocacy piece that gets me excited, it’s that with the passing of the Cures Act and universal access to data, we have the ability as a company to be a small part of helping create a better healthcare system.
Who are you rooting for this football season?
Ole Miss is where I attended college and is my favorite team. It has been fun to see them get back to a nationally ranked program after recieving the death penalty from the NCAA just a few years ago. It’s been fun to see Lane Kiffin revitalize the program(if he sticks around and doesn’t ghost us like he did Tennessee). Lane – I hope you see this..
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Here’s to a healthier and happier you.
