To honour Genomics’ recent partnership with MassMutual, Megan Kuczynski, President of Insurtech Insights, sat down with Sir Peter Donnelly, Founder & CEO at Genomics, to consider how this technology enables policy holders to make proactive, informed decisions that promote longer, healthier lives.

Q. Sir Peter, it was such a pleasure to catch up recently on all that is going on with Genomics!

I have been carefully following the trends of ‘predict and prevent’ in L&H. You have shared your vision of genomic prevention as one in which doctors and the healthcare system can deliver care before people get sick: “genetics in medicine is not merely about rare diseases or major cancer genes; it is about forging new and better ways for understanding, treating, and preventing common disease.” Can you explain the link between science and technology as it pertains to genomics, and how it can change lives for the better?

A. By giving individuals and their doctors much more precise information about the particular health risks they face, they can take the right actions at the right time to help prevent disease entirely, or to catch it early when outcomes are much better.

People are often under the impression that they know what diseases they are at risk of based on hereditary factors. However, through advanced genomics and polygenic risk score (PRS) technology, we can know so much more about an individual’s DNA and accurately make predictions about the potential future of their health. This puts patients in the driver’s seat of their health journey, enabling them to start conversations with their doctor and take action needed to reduce risk for the one or two diseases for which they happen to be at high risk.

Q. Earlier this year, Genomics raised £35million to accelerate the adoption of its cutting-edge technology, using genotyping to identify high-risk individuals who are often ‘invisible to the system’.  Can you give us an update on rate of adoption? Also, after the policyholder gets his/her results, what sort of follow-ups are then recommended regarding precision medicine and/or lifestyle modification?

A. Insurers offer our test because they see great value in what we do – they are able to provide a unique service that not only helps with engagement, but also helps policyholders live longer, healthier lives.

We’ve seen a great response on adoption, and we’ve done work to quantify the effect on policyholders taking our test on reducing and delaying claims. The numbers speak for themselves; with our test, policyholders can take action today to prevent and manage the illnesses that they are most genetically at risk from.

Once a patient’s DNA has been assessed, their results come via email with detailed risk scores, alongside actionable health advice and next steps based on their individual profile. The actionable advice includes what to discuss with their doctor to prevent disease, and factors in a series of aspects including age, sex, ethnicity, and DNA.

Q. This past April, Genomics announced a collaboration with MassMutual which enables policyholders to gain knowledge about their health in order to make informed, proactive decisions that may help them lead longer, healthier lives. Congratulations on this partnership! Can you expand on the importance of data privacy with these sorts of partnerships to protect the policy holder? What measures are in place to protect the insurer and policy holder’s trust relationship?

A. Data protection is embedded within the heart of what Genomics does: it’s in our contracts, in the industry and regulatory standards that we work to, and even in how we structure ourselves as a company. We use ‘privacy by design’ principles to ‘bake in’ data protection from the design stage, right through the lifecycle. Privacy is not an ‘add on’ feature in our offerings – it’s at the core of our design, and a foundation of our organization. We adhere to the latest and highest standards. Even though our Health Insights platform is not required to operate under HIPAA regulations, we ensure that all patient-facing systems and processes are in accordance with HIPAA privacy and security rules.

Insurers don’t see any detail at all from the individual results, so they remain completely private and confidential for the policyholder. In our collaboration with MassMutual, the partnership was designed around policyholder privacy. We do not provide individual-level data to the insurer, and the insurer does not know which of its policyholders take up the offer of Genomics’ services. This level of patient and policyholder privacy is extremely important in maintaining consumer and industry trust, and we’re all proud of the level of measures we’ve taken to ensure this.

Q. A recent Genomic survey of policy holders receiving Genomics tests found that 61 percent of its policy holders had an improved impression of their insurer. How does offering genetic testing differentiate the insurer from its competition?

A. There is increasing interest amongst life insurers and reinsurers in wellness offerings to their policyholders. Genomics and MassMutual are leading the way in harnessing the latest scientific developments to help policyholders. Our personalized risk reports allow the policyholder to learn, usually for the first time, which diseases they are most likely to suffer from. Presenting that information early enough means that they can take action to reduce their risk, to prevent disease entirely or catch it early when outcomes are much better.

By offering genetic testing services, Genomics and MassMutual are leading the way in integrating genomics into insurance policies, creating much more comprehensive, beneficial plans and outcomes for policyholders. This integration will catalyze broader industry adoption and ultimately improve health outcomes on a larger scale. Therefore, in the long run, life insurers not offering PRS testing will be behind the curve.

Q. Besides the noble endeavor of getting people to live longer, healthier and happier lives, how does offering genetic testing benefit the bottom line of the insurer?

A. Firstly, there is real and quantifiable actuarial benefit to the insurer when it comes to helping individuals live longer – the individual contributes more premiums, and their earlier premiums are invested for longer before benefits are paid. We commissioned a leading independent actuarial consultancy to assess this, and like MassMutuals’ internal analysis, the numbers stack up. There is a positive ROI for the insurer each time a policyholder takes a test.

Secondly, there are benefits in terms of policyholder engagement. Our surveys have consistently shown that most policyholders who undertake the test have an improved impression of their insurer. This increased engagement should have multiple benefits, including lower lapsation rates, recommendations, and additional sales.

Find out more about Genomics by visiting their website here.

Sir Peter Donnelly FRS, FMedSci, HonFIA, is the CEO and co-founder of Genomics. He has been a world leader in human genetics for over 20 years. Peter was one of the main players in what has been called the “Genetic Revolution”, the transformation in our knowledge of how genetics plays into all the common diseases, like heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. He held leadership roles in many of the major international and national human genetics studies of this century, including the HapMap Project (the successor to the Human Genome Project) and the Wellcome Trust Case Control Consortium.

Peter founded Genomics in 2014 to change how the world predicts, prevents, treats, and cures disease, powered by the extraordinary scientific discoveries on the genetic basis of human illness made by Genomics’ world-leading scientists and engineers. He wanted to bring the company’s innovation to partners who can join our mission to help people live longer healthier lives, as soon as possible.

Prior to Genomics, Peter was a Rhodes Scholar and became the youngest full professor in the UK at age 29. He has received numerous awards and accolades, and several of his papers are considered classics, with tens of thousands of citations. Peter was Knighted in 2019 for this work in genomics and has been awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Society of Human Genetics. He is also a Fellow of the Royal Society and the Academy of Medical Sciences, as well as an Honorary Fellow of the Institute of Actuaries.