ADT and XLHealth Team to Monitor Medication Compliance of Participants in Medicare Program Utilizing InforMedix Digital Technology
BOCA RATON, Fla., and NASHVILLE, Tenn., March 5 /PRNewswire/ — ADT Security Services, a unit of Tyco Fire & Security, XLHealth, one of the nation’s fastest growing disease management companies, and InforMedix, a provider of medication and care plan compliance devices, today announced their working together to address medication adherence issues among a targeted group of participants in Tennessee’s Medicare Health Support program.
About 270 persons with diabetes and hypertension will be offered ADT’s WellHealth monitoring solution, which employs an easy-to-use in-home digital device that alerts XLHealth nurses to participants who have not taken their medication and those who are experiencing complications, prompting them to intervene.
“The goal of the program is to keep participants out of the hospital by helping identify potential health issues early enough to be prevented or easily treated,” said Michael Lynch, Ph.D., director of ADT WellHealth. “The results should be better health, lower medical costs and peace of mind for the participant, his or her family, and their physician.”
According to Harry Leider, M.D., chief medical officer of XLHealth, “Medication adherence is critical to helping individuals with diabetes, particularly those with high blood pressure, avoid complications. Daily updates can help reduce avoidable hospital visits by alerting us to those who aren’t taking their medications or who exhibit symptoms of health problems. This makes it possible for us to step in and address the issue, before it becomes life-threatening.”
“The Med-eMonitor, combined with daily monitoring by ADT and health support services provided by XLHealth, should lead to better medication and care plan adherence rates and health-care outcomes,” said Bruce A. Kehr, M.D., chief executive officer of InforMedix.
Participants will receive InforMedix Med-eMonitors, small portable electronic devices, each of which will include medication storage compartments, an LCD screen, a simple keypad, and connection to a standard telephone jack. At scheduled intervals, participants will be instructed by the device to take individual medications, including dosage and educational information, and asked to confirm whether they have taken their prescribed medication. In addition, participants will be asked to answer a series of health-related questions about their blood pressure, glucose levels and potential signs of impending stroke. Trained professionals at ADT’s Customer Monitoring Centers will monitor their responses. If the participant reports health problems — or if no response is received over a set period of time — ADT will call the home to verify the participant’s status and connect the participant with his or her physician’s office or local emergency services as necessary. Based on reporting, XLHealth personal support nurses will then follow up with participants that require additional coaching and/or support.
According to the American Diabetes Association (ADA), seven percent of the U.S. population — or about 20.8 million adults and children — suffer from diabetes, a disease that impairs a person’s ability to produce or properly use insulin. The ADA estimates that over 60 percent of diabetics also suffer from hypertension (high blood pressure), a combination that can be debilitating and/or fatal.
About XLHealth and Medicare Health Support
XLHealth (http://www.xlhealth.com/) has been at the forefront of disease management innovation since its inception. Founded by physicians, many of whom were affiliated with Johns Hopkins, XLHealth supplements the more customary remote telephone “call-center” or direct mail support with ongoing, face-to-face meetings with nurses and physicians XLHealth’s Medicare Health Support pilot program (http://www.xlhealthmhs.com/) offers free health support services to approximately 20,000 fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries in Tennessee with one or more chronic health conditions. One of only eight organizations nationwide selected by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to operate a three-year regional pilot program and is supported by the Tennessee Medical Association. XLHealth recently earned Full Accreditation from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) under its standards for patient and practitioner-oriented accreditation of disease management programs.
About ADT Security Services
Celebrating its 132nd anniversary, ADT Security Services, Inc., a unit of Tyco Fire & Security, is the largest provider of electronic security services to nearly six million commercial, government and residential customers throughout North America. ADT’s total security solutions include intrusion, fire protection, closed circuit television, access control, critical condition monitoring, electronic article surveillance, radio frequency identification (RFID) and integrated systems. Introduced last year, the ADT WellHealth product suite addresses the varying medical needs of individuals. ADT’s Web site address is http://www.adt.com/.
About InforMedix
InforMedix, based in Rockville, MD, has developed the Med-eMonitor System as The Medication Adherence Solution for disease management and retail products markets. InforMedix has integrated a portable patient-interactive monitoring device, hardware, software and networked communications system to enable disease management programs, chronically ill patients and their loved ones, and medical researchers to efficiently monitor and manage patients’ medication and care plan adherence, clinical response, and drug safety. To find out more about InforMedix, Inc., (OTCBB: IFMX), visit the Website at http://www.informedix.com/.
XLHealth
CONTACT: For media, Ann Lindstrom of ADT Security Services,+1-561-988-3258, alindstrom@adt.com; or Kristin Brunnworth for XLHealth,+1-410-962-6447, kb@planitagency.com; or investors, Kevin Murphy,kmurphy@investorrelationsgroup.com, or Katrine Winther-Olesen,katrine@investorrelationsgroup.com, both of InforMedix, +1-212-825-3210
Web site: http://www.xlhealth.com/http://www.adt.com/http://www.informedix.com/