Color Health hopes at-home HPV tests will boost early detection, lower costs

Color Health, a virtual cancer clinic partnering with employers and health plans, is now offering at-home tests for the human papillomavirus (HPV).

The announcement comes ahead of a federal mandate set to take effect next year that will require most private insurance plans to cover at-home HPV screening. The Food and Drug Administration approved several at-home HPV tests in 2024 and 2025.

“Having at-home options for patients is important because it removes a lot of barriers that typically prevent patients from doing what they need to do,” Dany Matar, COO of Color Health, told HR Brew.

A recent paper published in BMC Public Health shows most patients are open to using HPV self-collection tests, and in many cases prefer it. The study, which drew upon a survey of 359 women presenting to emergency departments, found 84% were willing or very willing to use an HPV self-sampling kit if they were offered one, and 58% preferred this option to having a physician or nurse perform it.

Death rates from cervical cancer have gone down in recent decades thanks in part to women getting pap smears and HPV tests on a regular basis, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Early detection is important, as more than 90% of women diagnosed with cervical cancer at the earliest stage live for five years or more, compared with 19% at the latest stage.

Barriers that may inhibit patients from getting tested include scheduling challenges or work commitments, as well as embarrassment or a fear of testing positive, HR Brew previously reported.

The at-home test Color Health is offering, called BD Onclarity, is manufactured by the Waters Corporation, and was just approved by the FDA in April. Matar said the offering is part of Color Health’s goal of making cancer detection “as convenient as possible and as easy as possible for patients to do.”

Ultimately, the hope is that more convenient testing may boost early detection, in turn lowering employers’ health costs, Matar said. He noted that the cost of treating advanced stage cancer is generally much higher than treating early stage cancer.

“It’s the right thing for the patients to start,” Matar said of promoting preventative care and early detection. “But it also makes an impact on costs for the plan.”

Cancer was the top driver of health claim expenses for employers globally in 2025, according to a report from the consulting firm WTW. It was also the fastest-growing condition when considering employee utilization and cost of care.