Verizon and Higi to extend community healthcare access and services

NEW YORK, Nov. 15, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, Verizon and Higi, a consumer health engagement company and wholly-owned subsidiary of Babylon (NYSE: BBLN) that enables care delivery via an omnichannel platform inclusive of a connected network of Smart Health Stations, self-service digital and mobile tools and clinician-led home monitoring programs, announced their plans to provide digital health solutions and services that will extend care access for communities and help support preventative health, drive literacy, and identify high risk consumers eligible to be managed via home-based monitoring.

The collaboration will prioritize solution delivery in service of community healthcare stakeholders seeking to scale digital and virtual care delivery offerings. Through a combination of Higi’s home monitoring services and integrating the HIPAA-ready BlueJeans Telehealth virtual care platform with the Higi Smart Health Station, historically underserved populations, such as those living in rural communities and seniors with limited access to transportation, will have greater access to care—powered by the Verizon 4G LTE and 5G Ultra Wideband networks.

“The Higi platform provides digital touch points that will further extend Verizon’s assets across and above the network in service of better healthcare delivery” said Iris Meijer, SVP of Business Marketing and Revenue Operations, Verizon Business. “Together, we’re powering connectivity in places that matter to the community, by providing home-based access through cellular-enabled devices and video care delivery enabled by Verizon’s integrated telehealth tools. This comprehensive suite of health services will allow us to meet the needs of our customers both where they are and across their priority focus areas.”

By bundling these core services, Verizon and Higi will help to improve the digital and virtual care experience through home-based virtual care delivery and health equity service delivery. The combined solutions would also help to augment near-site, on-site and retail clinic after-hours or supplement in locations that do not have the volume to support a health clinic. Planned joint service offerings include:

• A reimagined virtual care clinic that pairs the Higi Smart Health Station blueprint with BlueJeans Telehealth for a digitally delivered primary care experience available within a trusted community setting. Services include self-guided body measurement and health survey collection, as well as the ability to interface virtually with a provider
• Comprehensive chronic condition management from home, backed by the Verizon network for reliable connectivity, provides patients with a dedicated care manager and health devices to monitor health progress
• Health Equity Services for underserved and vulnerable populations, including comprehensive remote monitoring for chronic conditions and digital engagement services to help determine eligibility and support enrollment for government and community benefits
  

Through the Higi platform, consumers can enroll in self-guided care plans, powered by the American Heart Association®, allowing participants to identify their own personal health goals and receive clinically based guidance and support to achieve them. Additionally, the platform educates consumers and enables personal risk identification for common chronic conditions, including hypertension, obesity, and type 2 diabetes, in partnership with the American Diabetes Association (ADA), and heart attack and stroke in partnership with the American College of Cardiology (ACC). Through its 50-state clinical network, Higi delivers clinician-led remote patient monitoring services for polychronic patients, pairing home monitoring technology with clinician care managers as part of a holistic approach to addressing conditions like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hypertension, obesity, asthma and COPD.

“Our partnership with Verizon supercharges our platform touch points in the community and home to meet the needs of healthcare consumers and stakeholders alike” says Jeff Bennett, CEO of Higi. “The addition of our station into a trusted community setting, powered by Verizon connectivity, provides access to primary care resources on behalf of partners seeking scaled solutions to improve health literacy, capture health and social data, and effectively deliver care. Ensuring broadband access delivers on the promise of telehealth, reduces the burden on the consumers and improves the ability of providers and health plans to proactively care for their populations, understand their unique risks and offer the support needed to address the challenges associated with chronic disease management.”

Higi and Verizon will participate in the panel “The Evolution of Care Anywhere - Transformative 'phygital care' use cases” on November 15 at 12:00 PM PT at the 2022 HLTH conference in Las Vegas (November 13-17, 2022). Attendees can also demo the virtual care clinic that pairs Higi’s Next Generation Smart Health Station with BlueJeans Telehealth at the Verizon booth #2217.

Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE, Nasdaq: VZ) was formed on June 30, 2000 and is one of the world’s leading providers of technology and communications services. Headquartered in New York City and with a presence around the world, Verizon generated revenues of $133.6 billion in 2021. The company offers data, video and voice services and solutions on its award-winning networks and platforms, delivering on customers’ demand for mobility, reliable network connectivity, security and control.

About Higi
Higi solves for lack of access to care by providing an omnichannel digital first platform alongside a physical presence to assess individuals’ ongoing health risks, deliver risk appropriate care management solutions, and navigate individuals to interventions offered by healthcare stakeholders at scale. We meet consumers where they are via our omnichannel national network of 7,000 FDA cleared, free to use, community based Smart Health Stations, web, mobile, email and text tools, home-based biometric devices, and a nationally based clinical care team, that together delivers a unique combination of consumer centered, self-care and virtual care resources. As the centralized, trusted access point to care, Higi serves as the hub for curating health resources provided and sponsored by Higi, Retail, Health Systems, Health Plans and Employers, where consumers can choose with whom and when they share data to support coordinated care delivery. To date, more than 61 million people have used a Higi Station to conduct over 400 million biometric tests.

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Media contact:
Erin Cheever
erin.dowling@verizon.com