HXRefactored 2016

Invent Health: Building an Innovation Nation 

We are at critical inflection point in our history where we are in a better position than ever before to leverage the American spirit of invention to create ways for people to live more independently, in better health, and with greater dignity. 

The HHS IDEA Lab has led the Department’s work in expanding public access, championing open innovation, and creating opportunities for entrepreneurs to contribute. The Invent Health initiative marks out a new frontier: innovation in the design and manufacture of hardware, such as medical and assistive devices. We are asking questions of our colleagues inside and outside government, aiming to clarify barriers and lay out guideposts as we explore how the Maker movement is helping us build toward an Innovation Nation. 

For example: How might we empower small-scale designers, builders, and developers to find creative solutions to challenges we see across the landscape of health and human services? What will happen when everyone has access to the tools and information they need to solve their own problems — and share their ideas with others?