Dexcom wins CMS nod for latest glucose monitor

Dexcom (NSDQ:DXCM) said today that its G6 continuous glucose monitoring system will be covered for Medicare beneficiaries.

The company’s product won coverage as a therapeutic CGM system, making it available to beneficiaries who closely manage their insulin dosing.

“The Dexcom G6 is a game-changer for people with diabetes, and we are thrilled to provide this innovative technology to the many Americans with diabetes who rely on Medicare,” president & CEO Kevin Sayer said in prepared remarks. “With the CMS policy coverage, Medicare beneficiaries with diabetes who use G6 will no longer require fingersticks to make treatment decisions or calibrate their CGM.”

Dexcom expects to start shipping its G6 system to Medicare customers in early 2019.

The company’s G6 product eliminates the need for users to calibrate with fingerstick measurements. The system also features a redesigned applicator that inserts a small sensor just below the user’s skin. The sensor continuously measures glucose levels and sends the data to a display device via a transmitter, which can be worn for up to 10 days.

Dexcom’s G6 system, which won FDA approval in March, was cleared as “fully interoperable” with other medical devices, like insulin pumps and decision support software.

“This Gen 6 system brings to fruition all that I envisioned when I first saw a sensor in the 90’s,” Sayer told Drug Delivery Business News earlier this year.

DXCM shares were trading at $133.96 apiece in mid-morning activity today, up +1%.

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