Blueprint for Change: Tackling Care Deserts for the Aging Population

Mike Desai, Co-Founder & CEO of Truentity Health, Feb 2025

America’s aging population is being failed by our healthcare system. If you’ve ever cared for an aging parent or loved one, you’ve likely experienced these challenges firsthand. Now imagine being one of the millions of aging seniors living in rural “care deserts,” where accessing timely care is nearly impossible. A shortage of primary care providers and strained healthcare resources have led to more hospitalizations, poorer outcomes, and preventable deaths.

Pharmacies are the linchpin of our strategy to address this crisis. Pharmacists, with doctorate degrees and extensive clinical training, are among the most trusted healthcare professionals and often the first point of contact for patients. During the pandemic, they proved their ability to close critical care gaps by administering vaccines, testing and treating patients, and supporting overwhelmed healthcare systems.. Yet, outdated regulations, undervaluation, and declining dispensing reimbursement limit their potential. This leaves patients underserved and wastes the opportunity to leverage pharmacies’ trusted relationships and community presence to deliver accessible, localized healthcare.

At Truentity Health, we believe transforming healthcare requires bold action and a pragmatic plan. Our vision reimagines pharmacies as clinical care hubs, empowering them to bridge care gaps and improve outcomes in underserved communities. Through phased execution, we build trust, prove value, and deliver results. With cutting-edge technology, we reduce administrative burdens, improve compliance, and create new revenue streams for independent pharmacies. Together, we are building a future where quality care is accessible to all.

Phase 1: Partnering with Independent Pharmacies

In 2021, we began partnering with independent pharmacies nationwide to tackle increasing operational costs and staff shortages that were eating away at their profits. Our modern service offering tackled these challenges by reducing operating expenses and cutting unnecessary fees (e.g., DIR fees) imposed by industry oligarchs, allowing pharmacies to focus on patient care and create new revenue streams.

Trust was foundational. We provided exceptional support and a transparent business model, showcasing immediate value through real-world savings and performance improvements. These strong relationships allowed us to expand into additional use cases.

By leveraging AI and advanced technologies, we built a highly efficient service-led business with strong profitability, enabling us to reinvest in developing our comprehensive care management platform.

Impact of Phase 1:

• Created new revenue streams for pharmacies.
• Achieved higher performance scores and reduced unnecessary fees.
• Improved patient outcomes.

Phase 2: Expanding into Care Management

This is the current phase we are in today (Q1 2025). Building on the trust and partnerships established in Phase 1, we are expanding our platform to include Remote Patient Monitoring (RPM), Chronic Care Management (CCM), and Transitional Care Management (TCM). Using AI and advanced workflows, we enable pharmacies to efficiently deliver these services by leveraging their existing employee resources, eliminating the need for additional staff.

Our focus on AI-driven workflows is driving higher patient engagement, with a goal of achieving the highest rate in the industry (90%+), reinforcing the power of the patient-pharmacist relationship in improving health outcomes. We continuously monitor our platform’s impact, tracking key metrics such as reduced hospital visits and improved blood pressure and blood sugar levels.

Additionally, we are engaging payers by demonstrating how pharmacies enhance patient satisfaction scores and improve health outcomes. Strong pharmacy-patient engagement drives higher completion rates for Medicare-required quality care measures (e.g., HEDIS), increasing performance scores for payers while improving patient care.

Reaching break-even in this phase is a critical milestone, positioning Truentity for future growth and strong investor returns.

Impact of Phase 2:

• Increased pharmacy revenue through new clinical services.
• Improved patient outcomes for patients with chronic conditions.
• Payers improve ratings, enhance patient outcomes, and strengthen their bottom line.

Phase 3: Advancing Healthcare through Clinical Research and Community Engagement

With a robust pharmacy network, proven success in improving patient outcomes, and a comprehensive suite of care management use cases, we will expand into clinical research and deeper community engagement. Leveraging AI, our platform will empower Clinical Research Organizations (CROs) to recruit diverse participants, ensuring equitable representation in drug development and innovation.

This phase positions pharmacies as key players in decentralized clinical trials and strengthens their role in community engagement. By bridging the gap between innovation and accessibility, we empower patients and accelerate drug discovery, ensuring new treatments benefit everyone fairly.

To focus on prevention in a healthcare system that often treats illnesses after they develop, we will organize health events and workshops with our partner pharmacies. These initiatives will educate people on staying healthy and avoiding hospitalizations, fostering healthy habits and encouraging early intervention. By building trust between pharmacies and their communities, we aim to make healthcare more accessible, personal, and proactive.

Impact of Phase 3:

• Underserved populations gain representation in clinical research.
• Pharmacies become a critical point of care, improving outcomes.
• Smarter innovations lead to better treatments and healthier patients.

Conclusion: Filling the Gaps in America’s Care Deserts

Truentity Health’s vision is to transform care deserts by empowering pharmacies to bridge gaps and improve patient outcomes.

Phase 1 built a strong pharmacy network.
Phase 2 expanded into care management offerings and strengthened payer collaboration.
Phase 3 positions pharmacies as hubs for clinical research and community engagement.

Imagine a future where no senior struggles to access care. Trusted pharmacists deliver health monitoring, chronic care management, and personalized care. Equipped with cutting-edge technology and fair reimbursement, they practice at the top of their license, delivering the full spectrum of care they are trained for. Hospitalizations drop, chronic diseases are managed earlier, and patients receive care close to home.

In this future, underserved populations are part of drug research, ensuring new treatments help everyone equally.

Radical innovation alone cannot solve healthcare’s challenges, and incremental change is inadequate. Our hybrid approach—combining bold vision with phased execution—stabilizes pharmacy economics, expands care management, and pioneers research and community engagement. Together, these phases modernize healthcare, harness technology, and localize care to create an accessible, efficient, patient-focused system.