SAN FRANCISCO, April 3, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Castlight Health,
Inc. (NYSE: CSLT) today announced the results of a new report
examining claims data from more than 6 million commercially-insured
individuals to identify geographic populations at high-risk for
COVID-19 illness relative to local capacity for intensive care. The
study found that more than a quarter—28.4 percent—of high-risk
Americans would likely have challenges accessing critical care
resources during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Specifically, the study found that the metro areas surrounding
Washington D.C., Detroit, New York
City, Seattle, Atlanta, Charlotte, and Dallas are more likely to face scarcity of
intensive care units and have high pre-COVID ventilator use,
suggesting high-risk patients in these areas could see shortages of
these critical resources.
"We know people at-risk for severe illnesses are dispersed
across the U.S., and we know that ICU beds and ventilators are in
short supply. This study allows us to project areas of highest need
as the pandemic evolves," said Maeve
O'Meara, CEO of Castlight Health. "Some of the most
vulnerable populations are in cities that have yet to hit peak
incidence of COVID-19, and this study can help provide the head
start they need to prepare."
The study found 22.8 percent of the evaluated population had at
least one clinical risk factor for severe illnesses with a COVID-19
infection, such as asthma, diabetes or high blood pressure.
Age was highly associated with an increasing number of risk
factors. The study also found that 19.2 percent of at-risk patients
live in metropolitan areas with lower ICU bed availability, and
more than ten percent live in areas with no ICU beds.
It is important to note that there is significant variance
within counties in terms of resources and presence of high risk
populations. This data underscores the need for coordination among
local public health officials and hospital administrators. Results
of the study have been shared with local governments to inform
plans for coordination of resources across areas of potential
need.
Castlight has also provided heat maps to enterprise customers
leveraging their own claims data to help identify hot spots in
their employee communities. This analysis enables customers to
prepare mitigation strategies for these vulnerable populations,
including extra vigilance around COVID-19 symptoms and
communication approaches to engage these populations with specific
guidance.
The study's analysis is based on the medical and pharmaceutical
claims of a sample of over 6 million people on commercial
insurance. Researchers examined the distribution of
commercially-insured people at highest risk for severe disease,
distribution of intensive care beds in the U.S., and distribution
of baseline ventilator use to determine geographic care gaps.
Castlight assessed risk by evaluating medical claims indicating a
prior or current clinical history that matched published risk
factors, including pulmonary disease, hypertension, heart disease,
cancer, chronic kidney disease, or use of immunosuppressive
medications. Severe outcomes associated with COVID-19 compared to
intensive care capacity are displayed in the map below.
The latest study follows the launch of Castlight's COVID-19
testing site finder tool, which is the first comprehensive
directory of all 50 states. Castlight also released a report on the
cost of seeking care for COVID-19 across and within major U.S.
cities. That report found extreme variation in cost of COVID-19
evaluation across 12 cities, including Los Angeles, Dallas, and Miami.
About Castlight Health
Castlight is on a mission to
make it as easy as humanly possible for its users to navigate the
healthcare system and live happier, healthier, more productive
lives. Our health navigation platform connects hundreds of health
vendors, benefits resources, and plan designs into one
comprehensive health and wellbeing experience. We guide
individuals—based on their unique profile—to the best resources
available to them, whether they are healthy, chronically ill, or
actively seeking medical care. Castlight transforms the employee
benefit experience into a deeply personalized, yet simple, guided
one, empowering better-informed patient decisions to unlock better
healthcare outcomes and maximizing return on healthcare
investments.
For more information visit www.castlighthealth.com. Follow us on
Twitter and LinkedIn and like us on Facebook.
For more information:
press@castlighthealth.com
415-829-1500
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SOURCE Castlight Health, Inc.