Obesity Medications and Digital Health Tools: Alternatives or Better Together?

Obesity medications like GLP-1s continue to proliferate, both in dosage forms and approved indications, offering new options to millions struggling with chronic weight management. As prescription uptake increases, so too does the need for more comprehensive approaches to managing a patient’s whole health. Successfully treating chronic conditions like obesity and diabetes – not to mention frequent comorbidities like sleep apnea and cardiovascular disease – requires a holistic approach that includes sleep, nutrition, exercise, and stress management.

How can drug products and digital health solutions – like clinically-proven medical devices, companion apps, and lifestyle management programs – come together to provide a balanced approach to drive the patient health outcomes that matter most: improved clinical measures, lower cost of care, and population health? In this roundtable, in collaboration with ResMed, we will bring together perspectives from across providers, payers, pharma, and digital health companies on the evolving landscape and the future of integrated chronic condition management.

More specifically, we’ll discuss:

1. Whole Health Management: What current approaches are successfully providing holistic solutions for patients with chronic conditions like obesity? What guidelines and educational tools are being utilized to help providers identify comorbid risk factors such as sleep apnea? And what is the role of digital tools in collecting and surfacing patient data for providers to screen for suspected comorbidities and tailor care plans—ultimately easing patients’ burden overall? 

2. Reimbursement and Access: What is the current reimbursement landscape for obesity medications? Where do complementary digital health tools (such as regulated medical devices and apps) and lifestyle management programs (such as those that help patients prioritize exercise, nutrition, stress management) fit within a more comprehensive treatment plan? How are payers thinking about combined therapies, and how will this evolve to build real-world evidence for combined therapies?

3. Patient Engagement for Adherence and Sustainable Improvement: With more patients willing to pay out of pocket (depending on markets), is adoption of complementary digital health solutions changing? With often multiple comorbid conditions, how can we keep patients engaged and motivated with their treatment plans – to maintain weight and other health improvements?