GoodRx — the consumer-facing, digital drug discount startup — is launching a new version of its platform tailored for providers.
Doctors, medical office staff and other healthcare workers have already been using the consumer-facing version to help patients find discounts and programs to help them afford prescribed medications, GoodRx Executive Medical Director Preeti Parikh said.
Targeting providers directly is a pivot from GoodRx’s traditional consumer focus, but the company sees an opportunity to capture more pharmaceutical advertising revenue in the process, she said.
“Provider mode” works similarly to GoodRx’s traditional version but adds several new tools intended to reduce administrative burden. It keeps track of frequently prescribed medications and allows providers to text, email or print the coupon to the patient during a visit.
Some upcoming developments GoodRx plans to implement include a feature allowing providers to communicate directly with pharma representatives and ask questions about new therapies and patient assistance programs.
It will also roll out a feature allowing providers to compare medication prices across pharmacies while including options through a patient's insurance coverage.
“We saw this opportunity that we needed to really address providers' needs, and when we saw how many were using it, they really are the gateway to help their patients get the medications they need,” Parikh said.
Alongside the provider mode launch, GoodRx announced a new collaboration with Biogen to streamline the process of getting patients on new speciality therapies.
As part of the initial launch, clinicians using provider mode will be able to fill out and submit enrollment forms for patients with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis who have been prescribed Biogen’s drug Vumerity.
The move should help boost GoodRx’s pharma manufacturing solutions business, which drugmakers use to advertise through the platform and which is a key source of revenue for the company.
In its second quarter earnings this year, the company reported revenue from pharma manufacturer solutions rise 102% year over year to $26.5 million, up from $13 million a year ago.
Revenue overall was up 9% year over year at $192 million in Q2, though the company saw a net loss of $1.4 million compared to a gain of $31 million in net income a year prior.
GoodRx also makes money through subscriptions for its monthly gold membership program that offers steeper discounts for those who sign up. The new provider mode will be a free version, though, Parikh said.
GoodRx isn’t a pharmacy benefits manager. It instead gets referral fees paid by PBMs when a prescription is filled with a GoodRx code.
The startup was founded in 2011, and raised $1.1 billion in its September 2020 initial public offering.