Huons said on Tuesday that it will expand its free support for the continuous glucose monitor (CGM), Dexcom G6, for diabetic patients to help them reduce the burden of medical expenses.

This is the second time that the company has tried to alleviate the medical cost burden for patients. In June 2021, Huons made the Dexcom G6 sensor more affordable to patients during the pandemic.

Now, type 2 diabetic patients without health insurance coverage, who were initially eligible for free support after three months of use, will qualify for such assistance after merely one month. This adjustment entails a payment of only 300,000 won (about $226) for the transmitter's monthly use, followed by subsequent free support.

Additionally, type 1 diabetic patients who receive health insurance benefits can purchase Dexcom G6 for only 90,000 won for one month of use.

This reduces the economic burden for type 2 diabetes patients by 42 percent and type 1 diabetes patients by 19 percent. Among these patients who qualify for medical benefits and are classified as lower-income, corresponding costs will be fully reimbursed.

Dexcom G6  automatically measures blood glucose every five minutes for 10 days and sends it to a smart device such as a smartphone, eliminating the pain of finger pricks. The transmitter also sends a warning alarm when a sudden change in blood sugar is predicted, helping patients manage high and low blood sugar in real-time and proactively. 

In particular, it allows data sharing so continuous monitoring can be shared with up to 10 people even during sleep or exercise.

However, the competition in the CGM market has been intensifying with Daewoong Pharmaceutical selling Abbott's FreeStyle Libre CGM and Handok selling Medtronics' Guardian Sensor 3 CGM in Korea.

There is also a slew of other devices that will soon join the race. 

In May, Medtronic also acquired domestic company, EOFlow, which specializes in wearable insulin patches and has a CGM platform. 

In June,  i-SENS gained approval as the first home-grown CGM sensor. 

Kakao Healthcare also signed a global collaboration agreement with Dexcom to jointly sell the company's latest CGM platform, Dexcom G7 in various countries including Korea when the relevant approvals are acquired.

Most recently, Kakao Healthcare also entered into an agreement with Novo Nordisk to sell the company's Mallya Mallya Smart Sensor which automatically collects and records daily insulin injection data through a mobile application that connects with existing insulin pens to track real-time treatment monitoring in Korea. The device is expected to launch later this month.