Monj Health is at the forefront of the emerging Digital Health industry. Digital health and digital therapeutics are high-quality software programs designed to prevent, manage, or treat a medical disorder or disease. A paper published in Nature Biotechnology (2016) outlines how digital health therapeutics offer the possibility of continuous monitoring, behavior modification, and personalized interventions at low cost, potentially easing the burden of chronic disease in cost-constrained healthcare systems.
Monj is dedicated to culinary-based behavior change, reacquainting people with a joyful, abundant, and healthful lifelong relationship to food. The Monj digital experience promotes emotional and physical well-being by helping people, families, and teams build new food rituals and behaviors through a unique approach to hands-on skill-building and behavior change. Research shows programs that incorporate multiple behavior change techniques and modes of delivery, such as the Monj platform, result in superior outcomes and we see an enormous opportunity for Monj in the coming years.
Internet You.0
The Internet has fundamentally changed the way we live our lives. It has revolutionized everything, from the way we shop, listen to music, work, get our news, or simply interact with our friends. Social media is “Internet You.0”. With social media, the Internet is no longer a one-way street; it is now an organic experience that encompasses almost all aspects of daily living, and it already has transformed our lives for the better.
Every industry has been changed by the power of digital connection and social media. What we are seeing now, in the midst of this global COVID-19 pandemic, when so many of us are forced to work at home with limited ability to interact face-to-face, is that virtual interactions are becoming more ingrained into our daily lives. Most of us have never heard of Zoom prior to COVID-19, but today Zoom is valued at $70 billion, a ten-fold increase this year. Zoom, with its ability to facilitate teleconferencing and digital connections, helped revolutionize a shift in business and social meetings. These changes come on rapidly, and the pioneers can get very large, very quick.
The Perfect Storm
Digital health and social media’s influence on healthcare is the next big revolution. There’s a “perfect storm” right now that is driving digital health and the emergence of digital therapeutic programs like Monj. In-person visits to doctor’s offices are being limited by COVID-19. Likewise, gyms and wellness facilities are closed, and shopping at the grocery store has become an unpleasant chore where we simply want to get in and get out as soon as possible to avoid the risk of exposure. Finally, the U.S. (and global) obesity epidemic is only getting worse.
COVID-19 has accelerated the trend of telemedicine. Just like working at home drove millions of Americans to download Zoom, we are now seeing millions embrace the trend of remote medical visits, according to Forrester Research. An HHS report in July 2020 found that in April, nearly half (43.5%) of Medicare primary care visits were provided through telehealth compared with less than one percent (0.1%) in February before the coronavirus really hit the U.S. Telehealth visits are surging, with telemedicine providers such as Teladoc (TDOC) reporting a spike in video requests to more than 15,000 per day.
The surging demand - and surging stock price - led Teladoc to acquire Livongo Health (LVGO) in August 2020 for $18.5 billion. Livongo Health offers digital health platforms that empower people with chronic conditions to live better and healthier lives, beginning with diabetes and now including hypertension, weight management, diabetes prevention, and behavioral health. Together, the combined Teladoc-Livongo commands a market capitalization of $27 billion, a lofty multiple over the projected 2021 revenues of $1.3 billion.
Likewise, with most gyms around the country closed or operating under limited capacity, many Americans have started exercising at home. A survey of 2,000 Americans in July 2020 found that Americans are working out 25% more than they did before the pandemic and 70% expect to continue this trend at home in the future. Similarly, with bars and restaurants closed or operating under limited capacity, more Americans are cooking and eating at home. This is a good thing if they are making healthy choices, or it could be a bad thing if they are turning to ultra-processed foods with added sugar, as there’s a clear link between diet and risk of mortality from heart disease and diabetes.
Monj & The Digital Health Revolution
It is clear that what was foreign in 2019 is now becoming more familiar in 2020, and much like Livongo Health, Monj Health is at the center of this emerging shift. Likewise, investor interest in this area is soaring. Omada Health, a similar digital therapeutic provider to Monj and Livongo, raised $57 million in May 2020 and is likely gearing up for an IPO in the next year.
Monj offers three digital therapeutic programs: In-Balance™, designed for transforming a user’s experience with food, In-Power™, a program designed to empower and educate users with diabetes, and In-Joy™, a comprehensive and intensive program that incorporates food, nutrition, coaching, and social interactions to improve outcomes.
See Video on the Monj In-Joy program
The business model is centered on value-based wellness care and harnesses the proven science of Self-Determination Theory (SDT), Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT), and BJ Fogg’s Tiny Habits method to unlock the key to lasting results. Research suggests that positive and emotional reinforcement is paramount to driving long-lasting, fundamental changes in healthy eating. Monj offers chef-designed and nutritionist-approved food plans, and skill-building activities designed to transform the food experience of the user.
The Monj platform incorporates a team aspect, combining education with continuous social engagement and positive reinforcement to offer a comprehensive approach to target lifestyle chronic conditions such as diabetes and obesity. The digital intervention programs incorporate live and on-demand workout classes, access to dedicated health coaches, and proactive nutritional resources that serve to educate and transform the user's way of life. We see Monj’s programs as not only highly attractive to users, but complementary to traditional care provided by physicians, and consistent with payor migration away from “fee-for-service” and towards preventative medicine, lifestyle changes, and value-based care.
But Monj is more than just a set of programs, it’s a partnering solution, serving as an extension of the care team at the center of two emerging trends - value-based care and digital interactions. Integrated delivery models with the patients at the center is what will unlock the most value. Working directly with providers, Monj aims to deliver more integrated care, patient-driven engagement, and resources that results in better and more sustained positive health outcome for the user.
The Monj Opportunity
The market is booming. We already mentioned the $18.5 billion Teladoc-Livongo merger and Omada raising $57 million on a $600 million valuation earlier in the year. Another example of fundings flowing into digital health includes start-up Virta Health raising $93 million in January 2020. In fact, the first half of 2020 saw $5.4 billion flow into digital health companies, both large and small; that’s an increase of 29% over the first half of 2019.
It is for this reason we see the opportunity with Monj as ground-floor right now. Monj has already inked deals with providers, including Blue Shield of California to offer program solutions to its network users. It is clear that healthcare providers are looking for effective ways to target chronic diseases like obesity and diabetes. Large companies like Walmart are teaming up with United Healthcare to offer scalable alternative solutions and digital therapeutics are an attractive low-cost and potentially very effective option. Monj is even engaging with alternative providers like Aflac, the largest provider of supplemental and disability insurance, to offer integrated digital health programs aimed at targeting chronic illnesses like obesity and diabetes.
Nearly 150 million Americans are obese. Another 30 million have diabetes and 70 million are pre-diabetic. The Monj programs are expected to be low-cost, ranging from a few hundred for In-Balance™ to just over $1,000 for In-Joy™, allowing for high penetration rates within target populations.
Monj Health is a digital therapeutics company that addresses the major causes of chronic disease in the U.S.: anxiety, stress, depression, social isolation and more, that lead to unhappiness. We provide a spectrum of programs to address and reverse T2 Diabetes and Obesity, with a focus on nutritional health, that enable a journey of joyful self discovery and deeper connection to those around you, while closing gaps in care and improving outcomes.
Visit Monj Health at http://www.monj.com or email us press@monj.com and connect with us on https://www.linkedin.com/company/monj
