Easing the Physical and Financial Sting of Diabetic Testing

The medical costs of people living with diabetes are about 2.3 times higher than for people without the disease, according to the American Diabetes Association (ADA). The cost of insurance premiums and employee medical claims continues to rise in the United States, which is especially challenging for people living with chronic conditions such as diabetes. For people with diagnosed diabetes, average direct medical expenditures can reach up to $7,900 per year—almost as much as the annual cost of a moderate food plan at home for a family of two. Also, based on a recent study cited by the ADA, many people with diabetes don’t test their blood glucose as often as they should, in part, due to the cost of testing supplies, including blood glucose test strips. 

To address many of these challenges, Abbott Laboratories Inc. recently introduced a new diabetes blood glucose meter called the FreeStyle Precision Neo Blood Glucose Monitoring System. The device received U.S. Food and Drug Administration 510(k) clearance in September last year.

Officials with the Abbott Park, Ill.-based medtech firm say the meter has a new, slim design that offers high accuracy and is available over the counter at major U.S. retailers at a lower cost than other branded meters and test strips, and without the need for insurance paperwork and co-pays often needed to purchase branded diabetes supplies.

The meter is available at a cost of between $14-$17 for 25 strips and a one-time fee for the meter, which ranges from $22-$28.
“People with diabetes depend every single day on trusted, high-quality tools to monitor their glucose levels,” said Robert Ford, senior vice president of Abbott’s Diabetes Care business, following the release of the company’s new meter. “This dependence makes it even more important to ensure people have affordable access to accurate, fast and easy-to-use systems such as FreeStyle Precision Neo system. Today, more than ever, consumers have more influence on their healthcare decisions, and Abbott is focused on offering products that provide the highest standard of accuracy, and are also affordable and easily accessible over the counter.”

Medical Product Outsourcing recently spoke with Jared Watkin, divisional vice president of technical operations for Abbott’s Diabetes Care business.  Watkin said the meter not only is new in what it offers to users but also in how the company approached its development.

The FreeStyle Precision Neo System holds up to 1,000 readings, is thinner than a AAA battery, and has a large touchscreen display with simple icons and easy-to-read numbers. The meter also provides a fast, five-second test time using a small blood sample size. The device also uses what the company calls an “E-Ink” screen, which is short for electrophoretic ink; it displays the appearance of a printed page.

“This product required a different developmental approach, as the U.S. version is different from what we currently have on the market,” Watkin told MPO. “For this consumer, our biggest development focus was on the E-Ink screen, which allows the meter to be so thin and lightweight. Also, we put a lot of focus on developing such a large and clear screen that people with diabetes—who often have vision challenges—appreciate.”

Watkin said the design team used a combination of internal engineering expertise with external assistance in industrial design, manufacturing partners and “essentially qualitative consumer feedback” to finalize the design as appropriate. In addition, in order to cultivate stakeholder buy-in, the design team employed extensive market research and clinical trials.

When asked if he considered the design of the new meter to be revolutionary or evolutionary, Watkin answered most certainly “evolutionary,” adding that the product first launched in 2012 in Europe, and has since evolved specifically for the U.S. market and customer.

“There isn’t one single challenge in general product design for the diabetes market,” he said. “Overall, we need to design a product that’s easy to use, that fits into someone’s lifestyle, that’s reliable and meets requirements for testing and accuracy. But then you have to make it accessible—affordability is a big component of this product, so that we are able to offer it in this revolutionary way. Bringing all that together can often be a challenge, but we overcame it with FreeStyle Neo. In addition to being beautifully designed, this product also includes the latest strip technology and is designed to meet accuracy standards. And, of course, it’s available at an affordable price over the counter.”