The a16z Show · Sunday, September 6, 2026
Julie Yoo states that the COVID-19 pandemic was a major catalyst for digital health adoption, forcing recognition of the need for remote healthcare engagement. This led to relaxed regulations around telehealth and physician licensing, which previously constrained the industry.
“So one, obviously we had COVID, which I think was a huge reason why people were forced to recognize the need to create a digital modality for engaging with the healthcare system.”
“And it really tore apart a lot of the previously held assumptions about how healthcare needs to work in terms of everything from how our physicians credentialed to practice medicine.”
“So you have to get licensed at the state level. And so, um, you know, doctors typically would have a license to practice medicine outside of their state. But with telehealth, all of a sudden you had this national scale demand for clinical services.”