Recently, Omada Health and HealthVerity announced a press release highlighting their collaboration to advance real-world evidence for musculoskeletal (MSK) care. Now, the results are in: a new peer-reviewed manuscript in PTJ shows that virtual physical therapy (PT) is not only clinically effective but also significantly reduces medical costs and utilization compared to in-person PT.
This study was powered by closed claims data from HealthVerity Marketplace, underscoring the value of comprehensive, Verified real-world data in shaping the future of healthcare research.
MSK conditions are among the most costly health challenges in the United States, with PT often recommended as a first-line treatment. Traditional PT, however, can be difficult to access due to geography, scheduling, or insurance restrictions. Virtual PT offers a scalable, accessible alternative, and closed claims provide the most reliable lens into the true financial and utilization impact.
By using HealthVerity Marketplace, which integrates Inovalon closed claims with the nation’s largest real-world data ecosystem, researchers were able to evaluate cost differences between virtual PT patients and matched in-person PT controls with confidence.
Key findings include:
Figure 1: Median cost savings per patient with virtual PT compared to in-person PT at 6 and 12 months. Created using data from Napoleone et al.1
These insights confirm that virtual PT care, when measured through closed claims, delivers meaningful reductions in healthcare spending while maintaining accessibility and patient outcomes.
Dr. Ian Livingstone, PhD, MBA, is Director of Data Science at HealthVerity and a co-author of the recently published manuscript in PTJ. Dr. Livingstone guided the study design for this research by providing the strategic recommendation to leverage Inovalon closed claims from HealthVerity Marketplace and played a central role in analyzing the data that powered the success of this study.
“Virtual physical therapy has long been seen as a promising way to expand access to care, but this study proves it can also reduce costs and utilization. These insights, made possible by HealthVerity closed claims, highlight the importance of comprehensive and reliable real-world data in shaping the future of musculoskeletal care and related conditions.”
- Dr. Livingstone, PhD, MBA, Director of Data Science at HealthVerity
The ability to track and quantify outcomes like cost savings, utilization reductions, and ROI hinges on access to high-quality closed claims. HealthVerity taXonomy, available through HealthVerity Marketplace provides exactly that, with synchronized open and closed claims that give life sciences and digital health innovators unmatched coverage and precision.
When combined with other real-world data sources in HealthVerity Marketplace, taXonomy delivers the most complete view of the patient journey.
Closed claims are essential to uncovering the full story behind treatment costs and outcomes. HealthVerity Marketplace and taXonomy are the best source to access both open and closed claims at scale, ensuring reliable insights across clinical development, HEOR, and commercialization.