What You Should Know:
– Bicycle Health, today announced that its high-quality, evidence-based virtual opioid use disorder (OUD) treatment is now part of Evernorth’s behavioral health network
– Furthermore, it will be made available to all Evernorth clients, as well as Cigna health plan customers who receive health coverage through their employer or marketplace exchange plans in 24 states. Evernorth is the health services business of Cigna Corporation.
Increasing Access to Care Using Virtual Care Models
Bicycle Health’s virtual care model dramatically increases access to OUD treatment – which is largely inaccessible in an in-person setting. An estimated 40 percent of counties in the United States do not have a single MAT provider for OUD, and 56 percent of counties with the greatest need have “inadequate capacity” to treat patients in an office setting, according to a 2020 report from the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Through Bicycle Health, customers will have access to behavioral health clinicians who can help develop a personalized care plan, including a prescription to Buprenorphine/Naloxone (Suboxone), if appropriate. To access Bicycle Health’s care, customers first have an enrollment call to ensure the program is a fit for the individual’s specific needs. After that call, an appointment is scheduled with a provider.
“We’re grateful and inspired by the visionary approach Evernorth has brought to this collaboration. Opioid addiction is highly stigmatized in the US, which directly contributes to 90 percent of people with the disorder not pursuing treatment,” said Ankit Gupta, CEO and founder of Bicycle Health. “By joining Evernorth’s behavioral health network, health plans and employers are now able to cover this kind of care more easily than ever before. It is only through that kind of vision and leadership that we will turn the tide in addressing the opioid crisis.”
Today’s news continues a year of massive growth for Bicycle Health – including its Series B announcement and expansion in 7 new states. Bicycle Health has now served over 17,000 patients across 24 states as the company continues to increase access to more affordable, flexible, and effective care for people across the United States struggling with OUD.
