Medtronic (NYSE:MDT) and UnitedHealthcare (NYSE:UNH) today touted first-year results from a 6,000-person analysis designed to compare hospital admission rates between people with diabetes using insulin pumps and people controlling their diabetes with multiple daily injections of insulin.
The study included people using Medtronic’s MiniMed 630G system, as well as previous iterations of the medtech giant’s insulin pumps.
The companies announced that people with diabetes using insulin pumps had 27% fewer preventable hospital admissions compared to participants using multiple daily injections of insulin.
“These positive results provide further evidence of the benefits of both automated insulin delivery and of value-based healthcare models” Hooman Hakami, EVP & president of Medtronic’s diabetes group, said in prepared remarks. “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.”
UnitedHealthcare and Medtronic inked a deal in 2016 to give UnitedHealthcare members with diabetes access to Medtronic’s insulin delivery devices. The one-year data reported today include measurements taken from July 2016 to June 2017. Medtronic’s latest insulin pump, the MiniMed 670G, was launched at the end of the study period and data from people using that system will be included in later analyses, according to Medtronic.
“These results show that patients with diabetes can benefit from using insulin pumps and comprehensive support services, thereby increasing the quality of the care they receive and reducing hospital admissions as well as costs,” Dr. Peter Pronovost, CMO at UnitedHealthcare, added. “The first-year results are encouraging, and we will monitor patients using Medtronic pump therapies to ensure we continue to see improved quality of care, fewer hospitalizations, and lower costs.”
