Meeting the Moment: Why Cardiologist Shortages Are a Call to Innovate Smarter Cardiovascular Care

The U.S. is facing a growing cardiology care gap. According to a recent report from AMN Healthcare, the average wait time to see a cardiologist in the US has climbed to nearly 33 days, a growth of about 74% compared to 20 years ago. Meanwhile, a staggering number of counties do not have a practicing cardiologist available. According to a report from the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, that number is 1,454 counties, equating to approximately 22 million Americans. In rural counties, that number jumps to an astonishing 86%. These numbers paint a stark picture of a system under increasing strain, and unfortunately, the outlook is not improving.

The factors driving these shortages are multiple, including a rapidly aging population, underfunded medical education opportunities, and a generation of tenured cardiology professionals retiring without a sustained pipeline of younger replacements. At the same time, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease is on the rise, particularly in these underserved rural communities. As we examine this growing challenge, it is clear that this serves as a pivotal moment to rethink how cardiovascular care is delivered.

Our core mission at Envello Medical is to support earlier diagnosis and disease management, data-driven decision-making, and better patient outcomes through portable, non-invasive perfusion monitoring. We initially focused our research on critical care and finding ways to help clinicians identify which patients are decompensating. In regions with overburdened cardiologists, our scalable perfusion monitoring technology is being designed to help extend clinical capacity and support timely decisions, all without relying on costly machines and consumables found only in larger cities.

Scalable diagnostic support can be transformative in areas where cardiologists are scarce. Enabling clinicians to detect early signs of deterioration or risk will help reduce unnecessary hospitalizations, accelerate referrals when needed, and ultimately improve outcomes.

This is not just a workforce problem, but a systemic challenge. Addressing it requires cross-sector collaboration, scalable technologies, and a shared commitment to keeping patient care at the forefront of healthcare decision making.

These are conversations we are having every day, at cardiology conferences and on our podcast Perfusion Musings, where we have been hearing straight from leaders across the field about the evolving demands of cardiovascular critical care. Their insights directly informing how we refine our technology to meet real-world needs. We are proud to be working toward a collaborative future with patients and clinicians with the shared goal of bridging critical gaps across the care journey, from early signs to long-term recovery.