Today, Medtronic and UnitedHealthcare announced positive first-year results from their value-based relationship focused on improving health outcomes for people with diabetes. Results demonstrated cost-savings and reduced hospital admissions for UnitedHealthcare members with type 1 diabetes on Medtronic insulin pumps, when compared to other members on multiple daily injections (MDI) of insulin.
Starting in 2016, more than 6,000 UnitedHealthcare members were given access to the Medtronic MiniMed 630G insulin pump system, previous generation insulin pumps and pumps integrated with continuous glucose monitors. After one year, results showed a 27% decline in the rate of preventable hospital admissions compared to MDI, providing further evidence of the benefits of both automated insulin delivery and of value-based healthcare models.
This announcement comes on the heels of the recent launch of the MiniMed 670G Performance Guarantee Program, a first-of-its-kind, outcomes-based offering for payers and employers designed to mitigate costs for diabetes-related complications.
“These positive results provide further evidence of the benefits of both automated insulin delivery and of value-based healthcare models” said Hooman Hakami, executive vice president and president of the Diabetes Group at Medtronic. “Through this unique partnership, Medtronic and UnitedHealthcare have demonstrated a commitment by both organizations to prioritize innovation that improves health outcomes and lowers healthcare costs. At Medtronic, our commitment is to drive innovation with the clear objective of delivering demonstrable value to patients and to the healthcare system. Our hope is that this agreement is just the beginning and that the entire healthcare community follows UnitedHealthcare’s lead to not only champion innovation in diabetes that has a clear and measurable tie to better outcomes and lower cost, but to also drive business models that reward those results as they are achieved.”
In 2016, UnitedHealthcare and Medtronic announced an expanded relationship that gave UnitedHealthcare members with diabetes access to advanced insulin pump technologies and comprehensive support services offered by Medtronic. These offerings currently include the company’s most advanced MiniMed™ 670G hybrid closed loop system featuring SmartGuard™ technology and Guardian™ Sensor 3 – the only system able to automate the delivery of a personalized amount of basal insulin every 5 minutes based on real-time sensor glucose values.
The first-year results reported today are from the measurement period of July 2016 through June 2017 and do not include use of Medtronic’s newest insulin pump, the MiniMed 670G system, which was commercially launched at the end of the measurement period. A growing and compelling body of both real-world and clinical trial data on the MiniMed 670G system demonstrate significantly improved Time in Range (the percentage of time spent in the optimal glycemic range of 70-180 mg/dL), A1C (a marker of blood sugar control over time) and Quality of Life for people using the system instead of MDI to manage their Type 1 diabetes.[i]SmartGuard technology is the only algorithm with the ability to reduce the risk of hypoglycemia by 44 percent, stabilize A1C at recommended levels, and minimize blood sugar variability.[ii] Based on these data, we anticipate further clinical outcome improvements over the duration of the relationship.
This data reflects first year results of a multiyear initiative between UnitedHealthcare and Medtronic. Both quality of care and cost will continue to be closely evaluated over the duration of the relationship, providing additional opportunities for more people enrolled in UnitedHealthcare plans to better manage their diabetes and for quality care to be delivered in a more cost-effective manner.
Care providers nationwide are showing strong interest in a shift to value-based care. UnitedHealthcare’s total payments to physicians and hospitals that are tied to value-based arrangements have grown in the last three years to $65 billion. By the end of 2020, UnitedHealthcare expects that figure to reach $75 billion.
