Gil Addo: Democratizing Specialty Care Access

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By Evan J. Cutts

In the age of globalization, Gil Addo, Co-founder and CEO of RubiconMD is changing the landscape of healthcare access from top to bottom.

RubiconMD is an industry-leading eConsult platform with the mission of “democratizing medical expertise so that providers can offer every patient the care they deserve.”

“The platform allows primary care providers to receive eConsults from medical specialists within 24-hours in order to deliver better patient care in the community setting,” says Addo.

Addo is someone who was always fascinated by science. Born the son of two small business owners, Addo grew up with the vision of one day running his own business.

Addo and Co-founder, Carlos Reines connected around an urgent question facing healthcare access: How can we create access to the expertise within today’s “medical cities” for people outside those communities?

In 2013, Addo and Reines founded RubiconMD and four years of growth has brought the platform to companies and healthcare providers across thirty-five states nationwide.

For Addo, being successful is as simple as making his mother proud and as genuine as achieving the “double bottom line: doing business and doing good.”

“Making specialty healthcare accessible is about serving people on all levels of the socio-economic pyramid, from populations in rural areas and correctional facilities to Silicon Valley engineers,” says Addo.

Increasing accessibility to specialty care across the board isn’t the only mission at RubiconMD, however, Addo’s company also reports a 65% diverse workforce with a nearly even split of men and women in all divisions of the company.

“Diversity at RubiconMD is something we’re very proud of,” he says. “Our results stem from two factors: starting the company with a diverse leadership team and creating opportunities for qualified individuals who represent the populations we serve to rally behind a noble mission.”

The realms of tech and healthcare are developing rapidly and Addo believes millennials and entrepreneurs of color are in a position to make a huge impact.

“Being a millennial of color today means you’re evolving to become a part of the majority and making your voice heard is as important now as it ever has been.”

“Over the next decade or two, eConsults will be the standard for accessing specialty care. The need to serve populations better, faster and cheaper is here, and what we do at RubiconMD is a large part of [fulfilling] that [need].”

Photographed from left to right: Vincent Velasquez, Cris Mercado, Gil Addo

Credit: Jeff Smith