Demonetisation seems to have worked in favour of the online healthcare industry, which has registered a 30 per cent increase in business.
Those in the business say that online footfall has shot up overnight. Satish Kannan, CEO and co-founder of DocsApp said: “Our mobile app provides 24x7 online consultation on chat and call across India. Since the demonetisation announcement, we have seen an increase of 38.2 per cent in consultations.”
Plastic money put to use
“The app is being used to provide instant consultations with doctors as people are not able to pay cash at clinics. DocsApp accepts debit cards, credit cards, net banking, and even payment from mobile balance. We have helped over three lakh users so far,” he added.
Gaining popularity
Healthcare experts confirmed that online consultation and pharmacies were becoming popular with people finding it more convenient, and sometimes cheaper. “The fact that you can use plastic money has made it an attractive option overnight,” said Dr. Anil Bansal from the Delhi Medical Association.
With India in the grip of a cash crunch, these healthcare apps may just be the answer to consumers’ needs with their user-friendly interface and pan-India services.
Sreevalsan Menon, founder and CEO of Medikoe, said: “We are trying to connect people with health services. At present, we have one lakh users on our platform. We have seen a 35 per cent growth in terms of consumers accessing our platform in the past 12 days.”
Cash-on-delivery orders impacted
Pradeep Dadha, founder, Netmeds.com: “E-commerce players like us didn’t foresee much of a change or problem, neither for our subscribers nor as a startup. There has been an impact on cash-on-delivery, but overall it is back to business as usual. Normally, people pay cash on medicine purchases below Rs 500. The government’s move has encouraged online payments and cashless transactions.”
Business has increased by
30% since the demonetisation announcement
