Issue 015
Digital health research from Brian Dolan

Welcome back to E&O Wednesdays, the enrollment-focused digital health newsletter from Exits & Outcomes — for paying subscribers only. This every-other-Wednesday issue digs into digital health companies that sell to self-insured employers as well as others that rely on enrollment-based distribution for their digital health programs.

 E&O Wednesdays

Here are a couple of quick notes on a few things going on in enrollment-based digital health:

• In a recent pitch to the state of Oregon, which currently offers WW (formerly known as Weight Watchers) weight loss programs to its employees and their dependents, WW offered to comp them access to its new diabetes program from October 2021 until October 2023. The state’s main health plan is run by Moda Health, and Moda already offers Livongo. Moda called adding WW Diabetes to the mix “duplicative,” while the state’s other health plan partner — Kaiser — welcomed it. The decision is due in late August. Here’s a little more on WW for Diabetes: “WW for Diabetes assists members with Type II Diabetes in controlling their diabetes through weight loss and nutrition therapy. The program builds on the standard WW program through: Personal coaching from a certified diabetes care and education specialist (CDCES). Personalized SmartPoints meal plan tailored to lifestyle needs of a member with diabetes. Weekly newsletter that helps the member apply Workshop topics to their diabetes program.”
• Aon (which might get acquired by Willis Towers Watson but the DOJ just sued to block it) has rolled out a new integrated MSK offering: “Within the integrated solution, members have access to Employer Direct Healthcare’s SurgeryPlus® concierge services and surgical network as well as Hinge Health’s wearable technology and clinical care team that includes doctors, physical therapists, expert specialists and health coaches. 98point6 provides members with virtual, 24-hour primary care delivered by U.S. board-certified physicians who can diagnose, treat, prescribe medications, order labs and follow-up with patients via an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered, text-based mobile application.” Curious if this is a reaction to Transcarent, which will surely have Mercer’s backing?
• Speaking of Transcarent: The Glen Tullman-led newcomer just raised a $58 million Series B and revealed that CirrusMD was its text-based virtual care partner. (Omada also uses CirrusMD to power a similar service.)
• Lyra Health just raised another $200 million. The announcement stresses the company’s global ambitions and also mentions a few customers: eBay, Uber, and Genentech.
• One more thing… Virta Health is currently enrolling employees at various Big Food companies US Foods, Dean Foods, and Coca-Cola Bottling Southwest. That’s according to social media marketing campaigns that went live this past week.

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Report: Apple’s health plans pivoted from primary care clinics to the Watch

The Wall Street Journal has an eyebrow-raising scoop today about Apple’s healthcare ambitions and pivots. It’s well worth a read (even if close industry-watchers might have been able to guess at most of this).

Remember, Apple’s on-site employee clinics were run by Crossover Health for many years before the company opted to take them over. That move, according to the WSJ, was intended to be the first step toward Apple becoming a primary care provider:

“Apple has envisioned an audacious plan for healthcare, offering its own primary-care medical service with Apple-employed doctors at its own clinics, according to people familiar with the plan and documents. To test that and other bold healthcare ideas, it took over clinics that catered to its employees and built a team with scores of clinicians, engineers, product designers and others.”

“Today those ambitions, which aren’t widely known, have largely stalled as Apple has shifted the focus of its health unit to something it knows well: Selling devices, specifically the Apple Watch, according to people familiar with its strategy.”

“The new primary-care service hasn’t gotten off the ground, people familiar with it say. A digital health app launched quietly this year has struggled to keep users engaged, say people familiar with the app and the documents seen by the Journal. Some employees have raised questions internally about the integrity of health data coming from the company’s clinics that has been used to support product development, according to people familiar with their concerns and the documents.”

It’s interesting to get a little more insight into Apple’s longer-term strategy with the move to take back its clinics from Crossover Health all those years ago. As I pointed out in The Crossover Health Report, this is the big risk Crossover is taking with its newer, bigger partner Amazon.

F500 digital health stack: Dell Technologies

Digital health companies love to boast how many Fortune 500 customers they have. This recurring feature of E&O Wednesdays digs into a different Fortune 500’s digital health stack.

So far, in past Wednesdays issues, I’ve written about the digital health benefits stacks of 14 big companies: Walmart, Activision Blizzard, JP Morgan Chase, The Home Depot, Boeing, 3M, Chevron, BorgWarner, Bank of America, UnitedHealth Group, Costco, eBay, McKesson, and Ford.

This week, I dug into the digital health benefits that Dell Technologies offers its employees in the US. So, here’s a look at Dell’s stack:

Benefits platform and provider search

Like McKesson, Ford, and few others E&O has dug into previously, Dell organizes its benefits via an online site built by Alight. It includes an app that employees and their families can use to navigate their benefits, and it also seems to power the provider search offering too. Alight also offers a call center with “Benefit Pros” who are available via email or phone to walk through the benefits package and perform some light concierge services. Site

Dell Wellness Hub powered by Virgin Pulse

One of the few new benefits in 2021 for Dell employees is a wellness offering powered by Virgin Pulse. The rewards and incentives program can help Dell employees save up to $700 in next year’s premiums (or twice that if a spouse maxes out too). The Wellness Hub also promotes access to Virgin partners’ services, including:

• meQuilibrium — “a program that helps you reduce stress, overcome negative thinking, and build greater resilience at home and at work.”
• Foodsmart (Zipongo): “personalized meal plans, digital grocery lists, nutrition guidance, grocery discounts and more.”
• Whil — “training mindfulness, stress resilience, wellbeing, sleep, and performance.”

Virtual Visits: Teladoc

Another change for the year ahead: Dell also expanded its agreement with Teladoc for 2021. Employees now have access to dermatology telemedicine services as well as access to virtual visits while traveling internationally. No co-pays for Teladoc in 2021:

Teladoc’s second opinions service

Dell also tapped Teladoc for its second opinions offering, which used to be branded Best Doctors. This program is available at no-cost to employees and is also available to in-laws and siblings.

Optum’s online therapists include Talkspace

Dell offers a range of options for mental health services. Under the heading “visit with a therapist online” Dell points employees to Optum‘s behavioral health network:

If a Dell employee would rather text with a therapist, Talkspace is part of the Optum behavioral health network. Dell highlights this as an option too, but makes clear that a week of texting is subject to the same copay as one outpatient visit.

meQuilibrium is highlighted in the mental health section too

While it’s a part of the company wellness offering through Virgin Pulse, Dell also calls out meQuilibrium in its mental health services section:

Diabetes management, pre-diabetes, gestational diabetes, etc.

Dell offers The Good Health Gateway Diabetes Care Rewards Program for a number of diabetes diagnoses as well as pre-diabetes. This doesn’t appear to be a digital health benefit, but it is surprising Dell isn’t working with a digital health company for this. This program seems to focus on making sure participants see their doctor and get their labs done.

Well, that’s a wrap on Dell’s stack.

Some of these stacks are easier to figure out than others (so no promises), but let me know which company’s digital health benefits you’d like to learn more about by hitting reply to this email. And if you happen to work at a Fortune 500 company (and I know that’s a lot of you), then please send me your benefits information.

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