A new partnership between a national durable medical equipment (DME) supplier and an endocrinology practice seeks to provide greater efficiency for both businesses, as well as for their patients using continuous glucose monitors (CGMs) and insulin pumps.
In a Sept. 8 announcement, Medically Modern, a national supplier based in New York City, said it signed an agreement with “an independent, multi-location endocrinology practice in Northern Virginia.” Medically Modern will manage “prior authorization and fulfillment of the practice’s CGM and insulin pump referrals and [give] its care team real-time visibility into every referred patient’s prescribed supplies.”
The endocrinology practice will see patients’ onboarding statuses, “from medical necessity documentation through insurance verification, onboarding and first shipment — plus ongoing resupply orders and each patient’s last visit date. When a patient nears the six-month mark without a visit — a window many payers tie to continued CGM coverage — Medically Modern works with the practice to get the patient scheduled before a resupply order is disrupted.”
Medically Modern noted that the new partnership addresses “the biggest pain points” for both businesses — described as “pharmacy versus DME benefit routing, patient six-month visits, and access to reliable supplies” and then creates a workflow that reduces the administrative burden for the provider’s office.
“The company then develops technology configured to each practice’s workflow, with the goal of reducing and ultimately eliminating the administrative work that makes prescribing diabetic supplies such a headache,” the announcement added. “Providers retain full discretion over patient referrals, participation in the program has no bearing on referral volume, and clinical decisions stay with each patient’s treating providers. Coverage and cost-sharing vary by plan, and Medically Modern verifies benefits for every patient before fulfillment.”
The endocrinology practice currently supports more than 10,000 patients diagnosed with diabetes. “Medically Modern works directly with leading diabetes technology manufacturers and offers the same partnership model to endocrinology and physician practices nationwide, serving patients across Medicare, Medicare Advantage, and nearly all major commercial payers,” the announcement said.
“We pivoted into this partnership strategy after hearing the same thing from providers over and over: They are drowning in paperwork from prescribing FreeStyle Libres, Dexcoms, and insulin pumps,” said Corey Deutsch, the founder and CEO of Medically Modern. “Our team knows the coverage process inside and out — the documentation requirements, the insurance processing, the white-glove service patients deserve. Combine that with tailored provider onboarding and technology built for each practice, and we make life easier for providers and their staff, so they can focus on what they do best: providing care.”
“It is an exciting time at Medically Modern,” said Medically Modern’s Lead Engineer Josh Hoffman. “We have always been technology first, and bringing that model to our provider partnership strategy has been incredibly rewarding. We are giving providers and their teams time back on tasks we can handle, and helping practices keep patients on track for the six-month visits many payers require.”
