Optum, a UnitedHealth Group Subsidiary, Acquires Vivify Health to Enhance Remote Patient Monitoring Capabilities

VCBeat (WeChat ID: vcbeat) learned from foreign media that on November 1, 2019, Optum, a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group, announced the acquisition of Vivify Health (Vivify), a remote patient monitoring startup. The terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Upon completion of the acquisition, Optum will acquire Vivify Health’s remote patient monitoring (RPM) platform, which includes a comprehensive ecosystem of connected medical devices and mobile health applications. This cloud-based platform supports holistic remote care management by enabling personalized care plans tailored to each patient’s unique needs, along with features such as biometric data monitoring and multi-channel patient education. According to Vivify’s reports, the platform reduced hospital readmission rates by 76% for patients at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, while achieving a patient satisfaction rate of 97%.

Through this acquisition, Optum will significantly reduce the costs associated with patient readmissions and improve the management of patients with chronic conditions. Readmissions represent a major expenditure in healthcare; up to 35% of patients with congestive heart failure return to the hospital within 30 days, substantially driving up medical costs.

RPM systems can streamline patients’ post-care procedures. Physicians can leverage data generated by smart devices—such as Vivify’s portable blood pressure cuffs and other wearables—to promptly assess patients’ health status and deliver remote interventions, such as arranging home nursing visits, thereby reducing the need for cost-intensive treatment measures.

Medical costs for patients with chronic diseases account for 90% of U.S. healthcare expenditures, and preventive care is particularly effective in reducing these costs. For example, if physicians can promptly detect unhealthy blood glucose levels in diabetic patients at an early stage, they can intervene before more serious health issues arise, thereby lowering medical costs.

Foreign media analysts suggest that Optum, with its expertise in data integration and analysis, may leverage patient health data analytics. This follows Optum’s prior takeover of all non-clinical operations at San Francisco-based John Muir Health, signaling the company’s willingness to serve as an intermediary between healthcare service providers and patient health data.

Optum’s acquisition not only reduces costs associated with patient readmissions but also leverages data collected from users to generate deeper insights into chronic disease management for use across the entire UnitedHealth Group.

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), founded in 1974 and headquartered in Minnesota, USA, is a diversified health and wellness company.

Optum, founded in 1985 and headquartered in Minnesota, USA, is a health services company powered by information technology, dedicated to helping health systems better serve everyone. Optum employs more than 160,000 people worldwide. The company primarily provides intelligent, integrated solutions to help modernize health systems and improve the health of entire populations.

Vivify Health, founded in 2009 and headquartered in Texas, USA, is a remote patient monitoring company.

(Compiled by: He Li)