Digital Diagnostics Partners with Rapidly Scaling Medicare Advantage Organization, ArchWell Health

CORALVILLE, IOWA July 26, 2022 – Digital Diagnostics is proud to announce a partnership with ArchWell Health to bring IDx-DR, the autonomous AI diagnostic system for the detection of diabetic retinopathy (DR) – including diabetic macular edema (DME) – to ArchWell Health centers across the United States.

“ArchWell Health is committed to improving patient outcomes and patient experience and we are honored to help further that mission by bringing IDx-DR to ArchWell members across the U.S.”, said Sean Murnane, Senior Vice President of Commercial at Digital Diagnostics. “We are excited to place our autonomous AI system in ArchWell Health centers as a part of their mission to create a wellness-focused community by bringing new and exciting innovations to their patients to continually improve the member experience as they scale.”

Diabetes is a large and growing problem in the US with about 10.5 % of the population having been diagnosed with diabetes. This means over 34.2 million people are vulnerable to developing DR and DME. With a 26.8% prevalence of diabetes for people over the age of 65, there are 14.3 million seniors alone who are at risk of developing visual loss or blindness. Diabetic eye diseases are treatable, and blindness can be prevented for most patients with early detection and treatment. However, in some areas as low as 15% of people with diabetes get the recommended annual diabetic eye exam to test for DR and DME.

“Using innovative technology like IDx-DR gives us the opportunity to diagnose diabetic eye disease with AI at the point-of-care without physician oversite in the early stages for people who may never have had access to a diabetic eye exam before,” said Dr. Don Goddard, national director of primary care, ArchWell Health. “We know that the earlier a person is diagnosed, the greater chance they have of preserving their vision, and we are looking forward to adding another high-quality service for our members as we continue working to improve patient experience and outcomes.”

With COVID-19 highlighting how digital health is a necessary tool, bringing autonomous AI to primary care locations within the ArchWell Health network across the U.S. allows people with diabetes to receive their annual diabetic eye exam at the point-of-care, helping to identify disease in the early stages and reduce visual loss and possibly even prevent blindness, without the need for physician overread or a separate appointment.