Catapult Health and Tasso have joined forces to use the Tasso+ self-sampling blood collection device as part of an annual healthcare checkup for employees of some of the USA’s largest corporations and major national health plans.
Catapult Health, a virtual preventive care provider serving 3,500 employers with over two million covered lives, and Tasso Inc., a provider of convenient, clinical-grade blood collection solutions, have announced a collaboration that will simplify home-based preventive care for employees and their families.
Catapult is now offering the Tasso+ device as part of its VirtualCheckup, an innovative at-home annual wellness checkup that combines simple and virtually painless testing with face-to-face clinical video consultations. VirtualCheckup is already a covered benefit for hundreds of America’s largest corporations and major national health plans, including BlueCross and BlueShield.
“Tasso’s innovative blood collection device is a perfect addition to our VirtualCheckup kit because it allows individuals to easily collect their own blood sample at home, virtually pain-free and without the traditional finger stick,” said David Michel, CEO of Catapult Health. “Together, we will transform the annual wellness exam by driving mass adoption of our VirtualCheckup, a solution designed to identify and address health risks for costly chronic conditions including depression, hypertension, diabetes and heart disease, all before they turn into adverse health events.”
Each VirtualCheckup home kit will include the Tasso+ device, a blood pressure monitor, and a measuring tape. Following simple step-by-step instructions, the recipient sends a small blood sample, two blood pressure readings, and a few physical measurements to Catapult’s laboratory in Dallas. A few days later, the participant meets via secure video with a board-certified Catapult nurse practitioner who assesses personal and family health history, reviews medication compliance, screens for depression, discusses test results, creates a personal action plan, and refers the individual into health improvement programs offered by their employer or health plan.
Earlier this month, Tasso announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has cleared its Tasso+ lancet as a Class II medical device. The clearance allows the company to market and sell the device to more pharmaceutical companies, healthcare organizations, and academic institutions across the country, expanding access to a simple and virtually painless blood collection experience.
“Today’s surging demand for virtual patient care further highlights the shortcomings of the painful, inconvenient, and inconsistent in-person blood draw procedure, which has been the standard of care for more than 60 years,” said Ben Casavant, PhD, CEO and cofounder of Tasso. “We are proud to partner with Catapult Health to improve preventive care by making the annual wellness exam a faster, easier, and more convenient experience for individuals across the country.”
For more information on the Tasso+ device-based solutions with Class II clearance, please visit www.tassoinc.com/contact.
