UnitedHealthcare has partnered with Qualcomm subsidiary Qualcomm Life to launch a new mobile-enabled wellness program, called UnitedHealthcare Motion. The program is designed for UnitedHealthcare members and their covered spouses who are enrolled in high-deductible health plans.
“UnitedHealthcare Motion brings together wearable technology, telemedicine and wellness incentives to empower employees to take charge of their health, while enabling employers to more effectively manage health care costs,” UnitedHealthcare Chief Medical Officer Sam Ho said in a statement. “Employees can improve their health by walking each day and earn financial rewards at the same time, using secure technology that is simple, intuitive and convenient.”
The program will provide employees with an activity tracking device at no additional charge — the cost of the device is built into the premium paid by the employer — so they can track their activity. UnitedHealthcare is using activity tracking devices from Trio Motion.
If participants meet certain goals, they can earn up to $1,460 per year in health reimbursement account credits. The three metrics that UnitedHealthcare measures to reward participants are frequency of activity (being active six times a week for at least five minutes), intensity of activity (walking 3,000 steps in 30 minutes), and tenacity (walking 10,000 steps per day).
Data from the device is synced with the UnitedHealthcare Motion app via Qualcomm Life’s 2net Mobile connectivity platform.
The program is currently open to companies with a fully insured health plan and 101 to 300 employees that are located in Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, New Jersey, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, and Washington, D.C.
UnitedHealthcare said that the payer has planned to launch additional programs with Qualcomm Life that also help employers track the health of members using connected health devices.
Last year, UnitedHealthcare announced a few other digital health programs.
In August, UnitedHealthcare added new access options to its Health4Me app for Medicaid and CHIP beneficiaries in 17 states. Health4Me, which first launched three years ago for members of employee-sponsored health plans, helps users navigate their health plan.
A few months prior, UnitedHealthcare announced that it would cover video visits from Doctor On Demand, American Well's AmWell, and its own Optum's NowClinic, which is a white-labeled American Well offering. The insurance company pointed out that the average price of a video visit is less than $50, and as part of its coverage for the service its members will still be responsible for a portion of that fee depending on the deductibles, copays and out-of-pocket expenses associated with their specific benefit plan.
