A reflection on where healthcare is headed, and the shared responsibility to help it get there.
HLTH 2025 was more than a healthcare conference. It was a pulse check on a system in flux and a call to action for leaders across the ecosystem. For four days in Las Vegas, the most pressing issues in healthcare were confronted head-on, in panels, on stages, and in hallway conversations with people who are committed to fixing what’s broken.
At Carenet Health, we were honored to participate in this year’s event as the sponsor of the HLTH AI Zone. More importantly, we were inspired by the conviction of the healthcare executives and change agents who showed up not just to talk about what’s possible, but to build it.
The Common Thread: Healthcare Costs Too Much
Across every conversation, whether focused on access and equity, experience, or rapidly advancing technology, there was a shared acknowledgment that healthcare costs too much – and not just in dollars.
It costs our patients, staff and businesses:
- Time: Wasted on inefficient workflows, redundant paperwork, and fragmented communication
- Trust: Lost when experiences don’t match expectations, or when promises of innovation fall short
- Energy: Drained from frontline teams forced to operate below their license—or outside their purpose
- Opportunity: Squandered when complexity clouds focus, and the urgent crowds out the important
- Outcomes: Missed preventive care, insufficient access to providers, and diminished quality of life—alongside stagnant business results and unreached potential.
We heard from leaders who are ready to move beyond incrementalism and who refuse to accept misalignment as inevitable. They’re demanding solutions that deliver not just automation, but orchestration. Not just tech, but transformation. Not just talk, but measurable outcomes.
AI Is Everywhere—But Impact Requires Strategy
AI was, unsurprisingly, a dominant theme at HLTH. Every corner of the show floor featured new tools and platforms promising intelligence, automation, and personalization. But amidst the noise, a more strategic conversation emerged:
How do we deploy AI that actually delivers results?
The most substantive discussions weren’t about AI’s potential—they were about its purposeful implementation. We heard executives on stage and 1:1 asking:
- How do we ensure AI enhances the human experience rather than replacing it?
- Where do we draw the line between automation and empathy?
- What does it take to deploy AI in ways that build trust—within teams, across organizations, and with consumers?
These conversations took center stage because healthcare leaders understand that AI alone won’t solve our industry’s challenges. But when paired with operational excellence, clinical expertise, and intelligent orchestration, it can drive meaningful transformation at scale.
Making It Personal: What Costs Eat at You the Most?
At our booth in the AI Zone, we posed a direct question through an interactive “Candy Wall” poll:
What cost eats at you the most?
Participants voted by turning a crank and selecting their answer in the form of M&Ms, creating a live, growing visual graph. The top response? Spending & Waste.
This result reinforced what we know: waste persists because it’s tied to systemic issues: inefficient processes, disconnected technology stacks, under-leveraged data, and misaligned incentives. What made the conversation powerful wasn’t the answer itself, but the collective commitment to address these root causes.
Powering Change Starts With Strategic Action
Every leader we met—whether a CMO at a payer, a CIO at a health system, or a founder at a health tech startup—came to HLTH with the same strategic imperative: to deliver better healthcare outcomes for everyone.
While the ideas shared were ambitious, the underlying motivation was deeply practical. We heard from executives who entered healthcare to drive meaningful change and remain committed to that mission, despite the operational complexity and regulatory pressures.
Change doesn’t come from conferences alone. It comes from what happens next.
Where We Go From Here
As you return to your organization, review strategic priorities, follow up on new partnerships, and plan implementation—we want to challenge you:
What conversations from HLTH are you committed to turning into operational outcomes? And what change will you power through strategic execution and measurable results?
We’re ready to hear what inspired your strategic thinking. And if we can support you as you drive this momentum forward, through AI strategy, operational optimization, data insight, or comprehensive Intelligent Engagement™ solutions, we’re prepared to co-create value that delivers both business and health outcomes.
Together, we can do more than envision a better healthcare future. We can Power Change to make it a reality.
