Digital Health specialist, Livongo Health has found a partner that will help it take an in depth look at the total needs of diabetes patients. The Mountain View, CA-based company is working with Abbott Laboratories to use the Freestyle Libre Pro System in its offerings.
The agreement calls for Livongo offering, when appropriate and prescribed, the FreeStyle Libre Pro System to its members with diabetes.
This will provide members with a visual snapshot of their glucose data, known as the Ambulatory Glucose Profile (AGP), offering a clearer overview of not only glucose levels, but also patterns and trends within those levels, the company said. Members also may request the AGP be shared with their personal physicians.
“This agreement makes Livongo the first comprehensive service for people with diabetes,” Glen Tullman, chairman and CEO of Livongo Health, told MD+DI.
Livongo has found a unique partner in Abbott because of the strides the medtech giant has recently made in the diabetes management market.
Abbott’s impact in the diabetes space skyrocketed when the FreeStyle Libre Pro received approval from FDA in 2016. The Freestyle Libre Pro includes a disposable sensor that is small, round, and waterproof. Placed on the upper arm with an adhesive pad, it is able to collect glucose level data every 15 minutes, providing up to 1340 glucose results.
A year after the Pro-version of the device was approved, Abbott secured an FDA nod for the FreeStyle Libre Flash, which can be used in the home setting. Late July, Abbott won a nod for a 14-day version of the device.
The device was called a game changer for diabetes treatment and MD+DI named the devices approval as one of five key events that disrupted the diabetes market.
“When someone either pricks their finger, or now uses the Freestyle Libre, that information goes up into the cloud,” Tullman said. “We have a machine learning structure that analyzes what is the best solution for that person at that time. What should that person do? So, it’s personalized medicine being delivered in real-time, right back to you.”
The collaboration is aimed breaking through some of the treatment silos offered to patients. It’s also a partnership that looks at simplifying the management of diabetes.
“This is the first time anyone is thinking about it as an integrated experience and bringing it together,” he said.
Tullman said this is one of the first partnerships Livongo has had with a medical device company. He noted there could be more, but that would be dictated by the needs of Livongo’s customers.
Livongo has been picking up steam since it was launched in 2014. MD+DI even named Mountain View, CA-based Livongo was as one of the 10 digital health startups to watch in 2016.
The company has been involved in M&A activity. Earlier this year, Livongo acquired Retrofit, a weight management firm. Livongo used some of the $105 million it raised during a funding round in April to help with the acquisition of the Chicago-based company, according to its website.
In 2017, acquired Diabeto, which provides comprehensive connectivity to nearly all glucose meters available on the market today.
