Do you think an Apple Watch will help keep your health on track? Health insurance provider Aetna thinks it might, and plans to subsidize the cost of the device for some customers.
Aetna announced on Tuesday the launch of a new initiative that would combine the Apple Watch’s technology with the health insurance giant’s analytics-based wellness and care management programs, all in the name of making sure customers are healthier.
Beginning sometime this fall, Aetna will make Apple Watch subsidies available to select large employers and individual customers during open enrollment season.
Retail prices for Apple Watch start at $269 and can reach more than $1,000. Aetna has not yet said how much of that cost it will cover, but the insurer claims it will offer monthly payroll deductions to make covering the remaining cost easier.
The company says that it is planning for several iOS-exclusive heath initiatives with customers who use the Apple Watch, iPad, and iPhone. Among the programs, Aetna aims to improve the ability for customers to manage their health and increase healthy outcomes.
In addition to assisting customers in reaching their health goals, Aetna says it will provide Apple Watches to its own employees who participate in the company’s wellness reimbursement program.
Aetna isn’t the only health-related company to use fitness trackers to spur changes. The gadgets have become a critical tool for medical researchers and drug makers vying to understand and bring drugs to the market faster.
by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist
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