- Time Magazine reports In a partnership with Apple, Aetna announced Tuesday a new app and wellness program that will track and offer personalized health recommendations to its customers, and grant them the option to redeem points for gift cards or toward payments for an Apple Watch by meeting activity goals and other health-related challenges
- In short, you can expect a free Apple Watch as long as you’re taking care of yourself via the Aetna Attain program
- The Aetna app will make recommendations based on both your health records and the activity measured by your Apple Watch – “As we learn over time, the goal is to make more customized recommendations that will help members accomplish their goals and live healthier lives
- You’ll receive alerts when it’s time to schedule a visit with your physician, or for prescription refill reminders and flu shots
- Aetna and Apple had previously teamed up in 2016 in a study, noting that “90 percent of participants” reported at least one health benefit while using their Apple Watch
- Health insurance providers certainly have an incentive to improve their customers’ overall health, as that could reduce the number of claims they have to pay out over long term
- In 2018, the West Virginia’s Public Employment Insurance Agency voted to scrap a wellness incentive program with Humana Go365 that would increase customer deductibles and insurance rates if certain health and activity goals were not met
- Aetna says the information gathered by Attain “will not be used for underwriting, premium or coverage decisions,” and will be used only to improve the app’s custom recommendations – the data gathered will be encrypted and fully HIPAA compliant, stored securely by both Aetna and Apple.
