Employee and government benefits organization Sun Life announced it is partnering with Hinge Health to provide its members with digital access to technology and clinicians for musculoskeletal care.

Hinge Health, founded in 2015, provides individuals with musculoskeletal conditions access to health coaches, orthopedic surgeons, physical therapists and technological resources, such as surgery decision support. 

Certain members will also have access to Hinge’s pelvic women’s health program and the FDA-cleared wearable device Enso, which provides electrical pulses to relieve everyday pain. Members can also obtain in-person physical therapy appointments in specific metro regions. 

Sun Life members can access Hinge Health through the benefits company’s Health 360 mobile and web-based app. 

“Employers, especially those that self-fund their health plans, are rightfully concerned with the upward trend of healthcare costs related to MSK conditions,” Jen Collier, president of health and risk solutions at Sun Life U.S., said in a statement.

“Sun Life’s own claims data mirrors the national trend, so partnering with Hinge Health, one of the most clinically validated MSK companies in the marketplace, makes sense. Through this new relationship, our members will be able to receive proven MSK treatments and an omnichannel engagement approach to positively impact both first-dollar and high-dollar medical spend.”

THE LARGER TREND

Hinge Health is one of the more prominent players in the digital MSK care and physical therapy space.

The company announced multiple funding rounds in 2021, including a $300 million Series D, a $400 million Series E and a $200 million secondary investment.  

At the time of its Series E investment, Hinge raised a total of $828 million, and its valuation shot up to $6.2 billion. 

Last year, the digital musculoskeletal company expanded its in-person home care offerings to include physical therapy house call services to complement its virtual care services. 

Earlier this year, TechCrunch reported that Hinge laid off approximately 10% of its workforce across various departments, including its engineering team. 

Other companies in the digital musculoskeletal space include SWORD Health, Glen Tullman’s Transcarent and tennis player Andy Roddick’s ViewFi.

Last year, virtual care company Teladoc announced a partnership with SWORD Health and Hinge Health to offer employers access to the companies’ digital MSK offerings. 

Transcarent, a digital platform focused on the self-insured employer market, and ViewFi, a tech-enabled virtual orthopedic and rehabilitation platform, partnered last year to deliver virtual orthopedic and musculoskeletal care to patients through Transcarent’s Consult Solution.