The critical first and final miles of health care | Michael Morris | TEDxLogan Circle

Roughly half of U.S. healthcare appointments are reportedly missed, and transportation is often a major reason. Michael Morris, founder of Kerico Healthcare, argues that transportation should be treated as a core part of health care rather than an afterthought. He presents a centralized non-emergency medical transportation model that aims to expand access and reduce overall healthcare costs.

• Transportation barriers contribute to missed medical appointments in the United States
• Patients below the poverty line often cannot afford transportation to care
• A centralized non-emergency medical transportation system is proposed as a door-to-door solution
• The talk was given at an independently organized TEDx event

Roughly half of all health care appointments in the United States are missed — and transportation is often the culprit. The importance of transportation in healthcare is wildly overlooked. Insurance companies and hospitals don’t see it as their problem. A large percentage of patients live below the poverty line, and can’t afford transportation at all. As a result, patients miss out on preventative care, end up sicker, die sooner, and cost the system huge sums of money. We have to treat transportation as a primary aspect of health care rather than an afterthought. Michael’s talk details how, by creating a centralized non-emergency medical transportation system, we can combine the best of commercial rideshare and private emergency transportation for a new systemic solution. This door-to-door medical transportation model expands the range of transportation while reducing healthcare costs across the board. Michael Morris is a Nigerian-born entrepreneur operating at the intersection of healthcare, energy, and live entertainment. Following the loss of his mother, he founded Kerico Healthcare, a non-emergency medical transportation provider serving patients across five states. Michael also directs renewable energy ventures, leads 125 Entertainment to produce cultural music festivals, and manages philanthropic initiatives supporting Haitian refugee communities in the Dominican Republic and transportation access programs for U.S. seniors. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx