Quit Genius, a digital clinic that treats addiction, has scored a partnership with Evernorth, Cigna Corporation’s (NYSE: CI) new health services segment.
The agreement makes the San Francisco-based digital therapeutics company the first and only nicotine cessation solution available through the Evernorth Digital Health Formulary, previously known as the Express Scripts Digital Health Formulary. Express Scripts, a home-delivery prescription benefit plan provider, is also owned by Cigna.
The recently rebranded formulary is designed to help employers and other plan sponsors find digital health solutions best suited for their workers and members. Those solutions, which are vetted by Express Scripts experts, target conditions that correlate with high costs and complex needs.
Given the nature of the vetting process, Quit Genius’ addition to the formulary is a testament to its value, according to company CEO and co-founder Yusuf Sherwani.
“Evernorth has taken the time to review and curate every solution against a stringent set of requirements including clinical effectiveness, value, user experience and security and privacy,” Sherwani told Behavioral Health Business in an email. “This solves a tremendous pain point for clients who are desperately seeking innovative technology-led solutions that can reduce cost and improve outcomes but don’t have the capacity to individually conduct that vetting process.”
Founded in 2015, Quit Genius was created to digitally treat smoking and vaping addictions. Today, it also provides services for alcohol and opioid use disorders. Plus, it has raised $13.6 million to date, according to the fundraising tracking website Crunchbase.
As part of the partnership, Evernorth customers will have access to Quit Genius’ digital program designed to help people stop smoking. The program offers on-demand cognitive behavioral therapy, breathalyzer tests, nicotine replacement treatment and coaching.
While Quit Genius’ partnership with Evernorth is currently only for its nicotine solutions, Sherwani is hopeful about the possibility of expanding the partnership in the future.
“The use of technology to help people overcome alcohol and opioid addictions is new, but the demand is clear,” Sherwani said. “We see a lot of opportunities for new and existing partners to eventually support our newer programs.”
The partnership is huge for Quit Genius, as it will give them access to millions of members across the country. For Evernorth, the partnership further bolsters its growing list of digital health solutions, making it even more attractive to potential customers.
“The added benefit to health plans is the simplicity and affordability we offer by helping navigate the morass of more than 300,000 digital health solutions on the market today, and delivering average plan savings of more than $120,000 per digital solution in alleviated administrative burden alone,” Mark Bini, chief patient experience officer of Express Scripts, said in a press release announcing the news.
Companies featured in this article:
