Mastercard Teams With b.well To Advance Secure Consumer Digital Health

Mastercard and the medical management startup digital b.well Connected Health teamed up to offer consumers a secure way to confirm their identities when accessing services via smartphones.

“Consumers want to use their phones to connect with their doctors, get information about their insurance and share sensitive information with trusted sources, but the process for authenticating themselves is complicated, difficult and not always secure,” Kristen Valdes, CEO and founder of b.well, said in a press release on Monday (April 5).

“Our partnership with Mastercard solves that problem by enabling consumers to protect their identity, while at the same time simplifying the verification of their identity, giving them more control over their personal information and streamlining interactions with their providers and health plan,” Valdes added.

The b.well platform coordinates a user’s health data across providers, insurers and pharmacies. The app also helps people manage their medications and get custom health information and alerts.

Mastercard’s new ID Verification service is intended to enhance security for b.well users, enabling them to verify their identity in real-time using a smartphone. The collaboration will also assist healthcare organizations, enabling them to provide people with a biometric alternative for ID verification. Digital ID gets rid of the need for physical forms of ID like a driver’s license.

“Mastercard is working to deliver a globally interoperable ID, ensuring strong security and governance. Our partnership with b.well offers consumers the ability to interact with their health plan providers and third parties while better protecting their personal identity information,” said Sarah Clark, senior vice president, digital identity, Mastercard.

Mastercard’s ID Verification uses a combination of government ID, facial biometrics with liveness detection and mobile phone intelligence. The automated user verification solution has so far delivered a high rate of success, according to the release.

Mastercard and the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) have partnered to help ensure governments can tap the digital health data necessary to promote safe travel as the world recovers from the coronavirus pandemic. Ideally, there would be an easy sharing of COVID-19 test results, vaccination records and digital ID verification.

Telehealth security and patient confidence will drive the adoption of digital healthcare and record management. Currently, digital obsolescence has been a major barrier. PYMNTS new Healthcare Payments Innovation Playbook series, done in collaboration with Rectangle Health, looks at how digital solutions can address pain points.

Telehealth services are on the upswing. One New York state hospital said that it conducts 85 percent of its outpatient visits online.