Aetna (NYSE: AET) CEO Mark Bertolini renewed his call to make treating the 5 percent of people with chronic conditions and account for a disproportionate portion of healthcare costs a higher priority in order to reduce healthcare costs long-term. He said the payer is partnering with Medtronic (NYSE: MDT) at the HIMSS14 conference.
He revealed that Aetna is collaborating with Medtronic to use device data to assess congestive heart failure patients. It will focus on situations when this patient population gains weight from retaining fluid, which can signal a worsening of the disease.
The payer will also deploy implanted glaucometers that can adjust insulin levels for diabetics to avoid hypoglycemia.
Bertolini pointed out that diet and lack of exercise combined with metabolic syndrome meant the percentage of the population at risk for developing diabetes would soar to 60 percent over the next 20 years.
Aetna’s references to its health IT acquisitions was a reminder that the company is a HIT vendor for several products, including mobile health symptom checker iTriage, private information exchange Medicity and Active Health, a population health clinical decision and workflow management tool to improve engagement and outcomes.
