Humana’s Acquisition of One Home Blurs the Line Between Payer and Provider (The MedTech Download)

Kelly Springs-Kelley
June 25, 2021

Key Takeaways

  • Humana is acquiring home-based services provider One Homecare Solutions, furthering a trend by payers to provide services directly. 
  • As new medical technologies continue to make an impact on patients’ lives, providers must effectively adjust their workflows to take advantage of these lifesaving technologies. 
  • In a victory for Amazon and it’s push into the healthcare realm, a recent study showed that its Halo Body Fat Percentage Calculator outperformed lab devices.

Humana Acquires One Homecare Solutions to Pursue Value-Based Home Health Strategy

At Jaunt we partner with medical device clients to bring novel products to that market, or bring an existing product into a new market. When developing strategy, we have to consider the 5 Ps: providers, physicians, patients, payers, and purchasers. Each of these stakeholders has a unique perspective and role as it relates to a medical device achieving commercial viability and, in the case of a purchaser, a successful exit. 

But there are times when the lines between these 5 stakeholders can blur. Sometimes it’s mutual interests. But sometimes, as in the recent acquisition of One Homecare Solutions by Humana, it’s because two parties are one and the same. This recent move by the company, which is the third largest insurer in the nation, “follows Humana’s decision to snap up home health giant Kindred at Home for $5.7 billion and is meant to boost the insurer’s value-based home health strategy.”

Enhancing the Management of Cardiac Device Data: One Physician’s Journey to Improving Operational Workflow

Medical devices have always played a role in revolutionizing healthcare and improving patient outcomes. From the iron lung, which saved thousands of people during the polio epidemic, to the innumerable point-of-care devices that are quietly keeping people alive every day, the impact of medical devices is profound. And now, with the addition of artificial intelligence, machine learning, and remote monitoring added to the ecosystem, these devices have been supercharged in improving lives.

In fact, when it comes to cardiology, according to a recent article in MedCity News, the addition of remote monitoring has been nothing short of transformative. Author Dr. Maninder Bedi, M.D., founder and chief medical officer of Optimize EP, explains that an “IN-TIME study demonstrated that the use of remote monitoring resulted in 50% relative risk reduction in mortality in comparison to the standard of care for heart failure patients. Additionally, the data recorded from these devices directly pointed to a boost in early detection, resulting in the initiation of timelier intervention.” He goes on to argue how critical it is for physicians and their teams to improve operational workflows so they can seamlessly adopt these technologies to best serve their patients.

3 Things Medical Device Companies Should Know About the Patent Trial and Appeal Board

Medical device entrepreneurs and executives create novel products often in response to a need in the market. Sometimes they are physicians who have a persistent problem and invent a way to solve it. Sometimes it is an engineer who combines an existing technology with AI or digital component, increasing the product’s impact. But regardless of its genesis, a novel medical device is just that – new, unique, and unprecedented. Which is why protecting that intellectual property is just as important as bringing it to life. 

It is for this reason that medical device executives must be versed in patent processes and laws, or have someone on their team who is. From this article in Medical Design and Outsourcing, “one of the key aspects of a strong patent is the owner’s ability to enforce it.” Ensuring that your product and company is protected in the case of a patent dispute is essential. The piece highlights 3 key learnings from previous Patent Trial and Appeal Board rulings to help medical device leaders understand what their largest risks are – and how to mitigate them.

Amazon’s Halo Body Fat Percentage Calculator Outperforms Lab Devices

Photo: Amazon

Once upon a time, medical device companies made medical devices, computer companies made computers, and online retailers sold things online. Today, this statements may still be true, however the latter two have certainly stepped well outside of their lanes. Recently it was reported that Apple added new heath features to its devices to help users track and share data with their doctors. It was also announced that Amazon is offering its COVID-19 test to the public, complete with a place online where users can check their results.

And in other Amazon-in-healthcare news, a recent study found that its Halo Body Fat Percentage Calculator proved to outperform lab devices. Unlike BMI, which is a rough estimation of body fat that does not factor in muscle mass or other factors, a body fat percentage assessment requires a much more specific analysis – one that, through smartphone cameras, the Amazon device is able to perform. And according to the study, that performance rivals dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), which The Verve article points out “is the gold standard” in measuring body fat. Importantly, “the accuracy held for people of different ages, ethnic backgrounds, and body types.” The technology gives users a much clearer window into their overall health, leading many to ask if the next step for the Halo technology is in the clinic.

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