We often report on chronic conditions, wearables for diabetes, HIPAA compliance, and smart home devices here on HealthTechInsider. Well, here’s a post that combines all of these topics. And the good news it’s for a product that’s available now.
In April 2019, Mountain View, California-based Livongo announced the first consumer digital healthcare skill application for Alexa that is HIPAA-compliant. Patients who use the Livongo Alexa Skill can say, “Hey Alexa, what’s my blood glucose level?” The skill responds to the query with the latest test results. It also provides health tips. According to Dr. Jennifer Schneider, Livongo president, the overall goal of the skill is driving positive behavior change with health insights related to glucose readings in real-time. And the HIPAA-compliance means that member information is kept private and secure.
Livongo’s Applied Health Signals platform includes programs for people with hypertension, weight management, diabetes prevention, and behavioral health. The system creates actionable, personalized, and timely information that Livongo refers to as “health signals.” By teaming up with Amazon, Livongo is likely to develop additional Alexa healthcare skills. We hope that other companies using voice assistants for healthcare applications will follow Livongo’s lead and build HIPPA-compliance into their systems.
