Episode 21: Ex-Apple CEO talks tech and the rise of the healthcare consumer

John Sculley, the former CEO of PepsiCo and Apple, now has his “head in the cloud” as chairman of the Boston-based health-tech company RxAdvance.

In this, the fourth season of Fixing Healthcare, Dr. Robert Pearl and Jeremy Corr are focused on spotlighting big ideas and the people behind them. Sculley, who grew Apple’s sales from $800 million to $8 billion, believes the legacy players in today’s healthcare system will be disrupted by new entrants who will focus on empowering consumers to make better health decisions.

In this episode, Sculley answers the following questions about his career, his passion for healthcare and the future of American medicine:

  • How did Steve Jobs convince Sculley to take over as Apple’s CEO?
  • How is Apple different today from the company they built in the ‘80s and ‘90s?
  • Why haven’t any healthcare technologies been able to lower healthcare costs and improve patient health on a national level?
  • What makes the culture special at companies like Apple?
  • Which technology will have the single biggest impact on healthcare in the next five to 10 years?
  • Why are prescription drugs so expensive and what’s the solution?
  • What’s going to motivate Americans to lose weight and lower the risk of diabetes?
  • What will become of Haven, the healthcare startup that combines Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase?
  • Is it possible to get doctors to view the people they care for as consumers rather than patients?
  • What’s holding back disruptive innovation in U.S. healthcare?
  • How do consumers go about separating the hype from the reality of new healthcare technologies?
  • Are tech companies scared by the major legal risks that exist in healthcare?

READ: Full transcript of our discussion with John Sculley

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Fixing Healthcare is a co-production of Dr. Robert Pearl and Jeremy Corr. Subscribe to the show via Apple Podcasts or wherever you find podcasts. Join the conversation or suggest a guest by following the show on Twitter and LinkedIn.