Insulet Brings in 2 Big Partnerships with CGM Powerhouses Abbott and DexCom

Insulet has snared two partnerships that will help it continue its strong momentum in the continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) market. The Billerica, MA-based company and one of the 25 most attractive medtech firms on the M&A radar, announced it had signed agreements with both Abbott Laboratories and DexCom.

The agreements center around Insulet’s Omnipod Horizon Automated Insulin Delivery (AID) System, which is in pivotal trials in the U.S.

The Omnipod Horizon System will be integrated with Abbott’s Freestyle Libre 2, which has approval in Europe. The Freestyle Libre 2 has not yet received a nod from FDA and is one of the most anticipated technologies to hit the U.S. market.

The companies said this integrated system will be designed to always remain in automated insulin delivery mode and can be controlled through an app on a user's personal smartphone to manually take a dose of fast-acting insulin, or bolus, before meals for optimal performance. Additionally, the integrated platform is expected to be the first combined system with a fully disposable wearable sensor and pump.

“As diabetes care becomes more interoperable, we're developing more connected approaches to improve care,” Jared Watkin, senior vice president, Diabetes Care, Abbott, said in a release.“Through this partnership, Abbott and Insulet will offer an integrated digital health platform that is simple and accurate and will provide a best-in-class user experience.”

Insulet’s Omnipod’s Horizon System will use sensor values from the DexCom G6 and next-generation G7 CGM systems to predict glucose levels into the future and automatically adjust the insulin dose required to help reduce the occurrence of blood glucose highs and lows.

This agreement builds on DexCom and Insulet’s previously announced integration efforts and formalizes plans to commercially launch the Omnipod Horizon System.

“Everyone at DexCom is excited to be in the final stages of integrating DexCom CGM technology into the Omnipod Horizon System,” Kevin Sayer, executive chairman, president and CEO of DexCom said in a release. “This system will bring together the demonstrated accuracy of DexCom CGM with Omnipod’s tubeless insulin delivery Pod which provides a simple user experience and freedom from injections and tubes. It will be a truly transformative, automated insulin delivery system giving more options to people with diabetes.”

The agreement continues San Diego, CA-based DexCom’s forward push in the CGM market. Recently the company’s stock skyrocketed to a record high after it topped 4Q19 revenue by $6 million.

Insulet is also coming off a pretty strong 2019, according to Kyle Rose, an analyst with Canaccord and Genuity.

“Insulet had an incredible 2019 with shares more than doubling (+115%), with momentum continuing into 2020,” Rose wrote in analyst research notes. “We view the underlying business, commercial opportunity, and management execution as one of the best in our coverage universe.”