The addressable market is a critical element of any company’s game plan: How big is the problem you’re trying to solve? Most companies forecast into the millions or even billions of dollars.

hc1 is different.

Indy-based hc1 is tackling a huge chunk of the $3.4 trillion Americans spend on healthcare every year. A longtime pioneer in real-time bioinformatics and its intersections with medicine, the company is no stranger to addressing the most serious healthcare issues. With its newest solution—PGx Advisor—hc1 is now setting its sights toward the task of improving medication therapies, saving money and, more importantly, saving lives.

PGx Advisor challenges massive market of wasteful health spending

hc1’s PGx Advisor marks a significant entrance into the emerging field of pharmacogenomics, which is the study of how a patient’s genetic profile influences their ability to process medication. While medical disciplines like behavioral health have deployed this kind of study toward specific prescriptions like antipsychotics, pharmacogenomics is only now reaching the threshold for widespread adoption.

hc1 is entering this space at a time of seismic shifts in how healthcare plans conduct business. “The overarching factor is the shift from fee for service to value-based care,” said hc1 CEO Brad Bostic. “So for the first time, you now have healthcare systems and health plans that have to find ways to get their patients healthier at a lower cost, and that they’re not being rewarded for every single patient transaction.”

Combined with an explosion of available cloud computing power and a maturing interest in pharmacogenomics, hc1 deployed its expertise to construct PGx Advisor. The solution uses machine learning to flag potentially dangerous drug interactions, trigger genetic testing and produce results that pharmacists use to craft a patient’s best drug plan.

PGx Advisor’s regimens will reduce medication failures and potentially save patients’ lives; healthcare plans will see reduced spending due to failed or wasteful treatments. It’s not a substitute for intelligent medical care, but it’s a powerful tool to augment clinical environments. “This is not about technology replacing clinical expertise,” said Brad. “This is about bringing to the surface the best possible scientifically validated information so that clinical experts can make the most personalized decision possible for their patients.”

New products continue train of successes at hc1

On June 18, hc1’s PGx Advisor received a coveted TechPoint “Best of Tech” Mira Award and was named Tech Product of the year. More information about the award is available in the official winner story, including two videos—the acceptance speech by Reed Richardson, vice president of Rx Business Operations and Gerry Dick’s Inside Indiana Business interview with CEO Brad Bostic.

The Mira Awards judges liked that PGx Advisor can greatly reduce the percentage of drugs prescribed that are either ineffective or harmful by making sure patients receive the right prescriptions at the right dose at the right time. Among typical working-age adults, average savings expected from implementation of PGx Advisor are more than $720 per person, per year. Among seniors, who carry even higher risks of drug interactions, savings are expected at more than $1,228 per person per year.

When applied on a national scale hc1’s PGx Advisor has the potential to strip more than $500 billion dollars of wasted spending from the healthcare system, which is, of course, secondary to preventing unnecessary illnesses from the wrong drugs or drug interactions or even death.

Based on feedback from their deliberations, the judges believe hc1 is truly leading the way to improve a critical area of healthcare by applying its unique approaches to solving problems through machine learning, cloud-based software, and a dedication to treating patients as individuals by providing a holistic view of each patient through complete data.

Prior to being named Tech Product of the Year for PGx Advisor, TechPoint Index wrote about hc1’s CV19 Lab Testing Dashboard, a free dashboard intended to get critical and up-to-the-second accurate information into the hands of healthcare workers and policy makers.

“Partners across the country have told us health systems and public health officials need more timely and granular insight to better plan for and address the needs of the CV-19 pandemic,” said Scott LaNeve, senior vice president for high-value care at hc1. “Given our unique assets and capabilities, we mobilized our team and lab coalition partners to quickly deliver a critical component of national surveillance infrastructure that addresses these challenges.”

For more information about the hc1 COVID-19 dashboard, read the TechPoint Index story In the face of crisis, hc1 created a dashboard combating COVID-19. Visit the hc1 listing in the TechPoint Tech Directory for more information and resources about hc1, including more stories about the company and its award-winning (and life-saving) products.