Key takeaways:
- 85% of 4,714 paired respondents reported at least a 30% improvement in one or more tracked GI symptom measures.
- 9,012 adults aged 65+ completed PHQ-2 depression screening, with 36.9% screening positive at baseline.
- The white paper maps observed Nerva outcomes to HOS, HEDIS DSF-E and member experience priorities, then outlines plan-level validation.
Nerva Health today published Improving GI Health in Medicare Advantage, a new white paper examining real-world GI and mental health outcomes among US Nerva users aged 65 and over.
The report connects observed symptom improvement, depression screening and engagement to the physical health, mental health and member experience priorities Medicare Advantage plans already manage. It also sets out how a plan could validate those outcomes prospectively using its own HOS, HEDIS, experience, utilization and claims data.
What the analysis found
Among 4,714 users with paired baseline and follow-up assessments and calculable change for at least one of six tracked GI symptom measures, 4,009, or 85%, reported at least a 30% improvement in one or more measures. Each respondent was counted once.
Among 4,947 users with paired assessments for overall GI symptoms, 60% reported at least a 30% improvement and mean symptom severity fell by 38.6%. Across the measure-specific paired cohorts, 59% reported at least a 30% improvement in abdominal pain.
Mental health symptoms moved alongside GI symptoms. Among 4,630 users with paired PHQ-4 assessments, 44% improved by at least three points. The mean score fell from 5.53 at baseline to 3.25 at program completion, a 41.2% reduction.
Depression screening reached a broader population. A total of 9,012 users completed a baseline PHQ-2 screen, and 36.9% screened positive. This shows how a member-selected digestive care program can create a practical setting for standardized screening and repeated measurement.
