Santa Fe, N.M.-based Quel Health launched a telehealth platform focused on using GLP-1 receptor agonists in addiction care.
The platform is available in 41 states and the District of Columbia, with national coverage planned by year-end, according to a Sept. 8 news release from the company. Quel also named Wernersville, Pa.-based Caron Treatment Centers a founding strategic partner.
Patients can meet virtually with affiliated addiction expertise providers for evaluations and individualized treatment plans. Those plans may involve off-label GLP-1 receptor agonists when clinically appropriate. Other care includes video visits with medication management and health tracking as well as app-based messaging. No GLP-1 medication is FDA-approved to treat addiction; approved indications for the drug class include Type 2 diabetes, obesity or overweight, heart disease and kidney disease.
The approach follows work at Caron’s Pennsylvania and Florida campuses, where Steven Klein, MD, PhD, co-founder and chief medical officer of Quel Health, and his team evaluate GLP-1 receptor agonists in patients whose primary diagnosis was substance use disorder rather than obesity or diabetes.
Caron has treated more than 600 patients with GLP-1 receptor agonists for substance use disorder.
“What’s most exciting about the GLP-1 receptor agonists is that … they modulate reward pathways and reduce cravings for substances across a pretty wide domain,” Adam Scioli, DO, former chief medical officer at Caron, told Becker’s. “It’s not just alcohol. It’s not just opioids. There’s evidence building that suggests other substances, including nicotine, are impacted by this pathway.”
Unlike medication that targets one receptor, GLP-1s target the brain’s reward system itself, Dr. Scioli said. “Very different from what we’re talking about here with the GLP-1 receptor agonists that actually focus upstream on a system, a network of brain pathways that really, really changes the way [the patient] responds to perceived reward,” he said.
For patients, the impact can be immediate. Dr. Scioli said the drugs have quieted down the craving or “noise” that makes withdrawal difficult, enabling patients to tolerate treatment better and engage more quickly in therapy.
A March study published in The BMJ adds to that evidence base. Researchers at St. Louis-based WashU Medicine analyzed data from more than 600,000 veterans with Type 2 diabetes and found GLP-1 users had a 14% lower risk of developing any substance use disorder than patients on other diabetes medications, with risk reductions ranging from 14% to 25% depending on the substance.
Among veterans with preexisting substance use disorders, GLP-1 use was tied to 30% fewer emergency department visits, 25% fewer hospitalizations, 40% fewer overdoses and 50% fewer drug-related deaths over a three-year period. It’s one of several studies pointing to a positive association between GLP-1s and lower addiction risk.
More than 50 clinical trials examining GLP-1s for addiction are currently registered on ClinicalTrials.gov.
At the Becker's 11th Annual IT + Revenue Cycle Conference: The Future of AI & Digital Health, taking place September 14–17 in Chicago, healthcare executives and digital leaders from across the country will come together to explore how AI, interoperability, cybersecurity, and revenue cycle innovation are transforming care delivery, strengthening financial performance, and driving the next era of digital health. Apply for complimentary registration now.
