Genomind said today it will offer its Genomind Professional PGx Express mental health genetic tests at the pharmacies of all ACME Markets Inc. supermarkets in Pennsylvania, expanding a year-and-a-half-old partnership with ACME’s parent company Albertsons.

The expanded collaboration—whose value was not disclosed—will bring Genomind’s test to 59 locations nationwide from the 28 sites initially set when Genomind first partnered with Albertsons in May 2018.

Genomind Professional PGx Express—available by prescription only—applies pharmacogenomic (PGx) testing following a cheek swab to identify patient-specific genetic markers intended to better inform mental health treatment decisions.

Test results are bundled with a suite of services designed to enable access to care, improve patient outcomes, and reduce healthcare costs through collaboration between a patient, prescriber, and pharmacist.

“Our expanded partnership with Albertsons Companies fully engages a new ally for patients in accessing mental health resources: the pharmacists,” Genomind CEO Shawn Patrick O’Brien said in a statement. “Pharmacists serve the front lines of medication management, and this joint effort enables a coordinated team of clinicians, pharmacists, and pharmacogenomics experts to quickly and thoroughly address patient needs.”

At the ACME pharmacies, pharmacists will be specially trained to offer Genomind Professional PGx Express. The pharmacists will also have access to G-DIG, Genomind’s proprietary software system designed to offer updated information on how drugs may interact with patient genotypes as well as with other drugs.

Pharmacists who observe a pattern of unsuccessful experiences with prescribed mental health medications can offer patients free educational materials about integrating Genomind Professional PGx Express into their treatment plans.

With patient permission, the pharmacist can coordinate with the patient’s healthcare provider to order the test and help administer the non-invasive cheek swab in a specially designated area of the ACME pharmacy, Genomind and ACME said.

The pharmacist will then send the sample to Genomind’s lab. Within three days of receiving it—which Genomind says is the fastest turnaround time in the industry—Genomind will provide the pharmacist and ordering clinician with a results report.

Genomind offers two versions of that report: A full report analyzing potential variants on 24 pharmacokinetic or pharmacodynamic genes selected for inclusion based on guidelines from expert consortia and review of hundreds of peer-reviewed studies, and a CORE Anxiety and Depression Report focused on variants on a subset panel of 15 genes most relevant to anxiety and depression.

The full report results also include genetic information relevant for the treatment of conditions including depression, anxiety, autism, schizophrenia, chronic pain, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and substance abuse.

In addition to the personalized PGx report, Genomind Professional PGx Express offers patients:

• Consultations by the pharmacists and clinicians with Genomind’s PGx experts to review report results.
• An Rx MetaType Card, which is compatible with electronic medical records (EMRs) and provides the individual patient’s genotype and phenotype for certain genetic variants related to drug metabolism.
• Access for patients and providers to NeuroFlow, a progressive collaborative care digital platform of behavioral health smartphone apps to help the care team and patients better track compliance with treatment plans and enable remote monitoring and measurement-based care.

In their initial partnership, Albertsons brought Genomind Professional PGx Express to Sav-On pharmacies at 21 Albertsons supermarkets in Boise, ID, and nearby communities; 5 Jewel-Osco pharmacies at Jewel-Osco markets in the Chicago area; and 2 Sav-On pharmacies at Acme markets in the Philadelphia area.

That initial rollout was successful, stated Janis Levit, Director of Pharmacy, ACME Markets: “By expanding this service to additional pharmacies, we’re aiming to help more patients, and their providers, better manage their medications and live happier, healthier lives.”

O’Brien added: “Albertsons Companies has an ongoing commitment to pharmacy innovation, and we are thrilled to grow this partnership so that more patients have access to these mental health tools.”