Established digital health companies continue to consolidate their products, services, and platforms. Part of this strategy can include joining with a strong, complementary partner when you want your company to grow. Activity and health monitoring wearables company Fitbit Health Solutions, owned by Google since 2019, recently announced a partnership with Pretaa, Inc. Pretaa is a behavioral analytics company that focuses on improving outcomes for people who are recovering from substance abuse disorder.
Fitbit has been one of major fitness tracker brands since its 2009 launch. Fitbit trackers and smart watches now also monitor a growing number of health biometrics, including passive AFib detection in an upgrade for many recent models. Fitbit’s optional Premier subscription program also focuses on improving health outcomes with monitored behavior changes. Pretaa’s platform sends reports and encouragement to wearers. Pretaa also sends data and actionable support plans to the user’s family, friends, and care teams. Pretaa will incorporate Fitbit data into its analytics platform.
Depending on the specific model, Pretaa will take advantage of Fitbit biometric data along with activity tracking and sleep monitoring data. Biometrics will include heart rate, oxygen saturation, and body temperature. We’re happy to see increased collaboration among digital health companies, in part because that activity validates clinical usefulness. If the Fitbit and Pretaa collaboration can help stem the massive human cost of opioid and other addictions, that’s also a big win.
