In this day where there seems to an app for just about everything, one health insurance company is taking a decidedly different approach to insomnia, sleep apnea, and other nighttime issues. 

Highmark, the parent Blue Cross insurers in Delaware, West Virginia and greater Pittsburgh’s Allegheny Health Network is opening up a retail store catering to all aspects of sleep and the numerous factors inhibiting Americans from a good-night’s rest.

It’s a first-of-its kind sleep store, and also the first brick-and-mortar retail location to evolve out of Highmark's Business Innovation and Development department, amid the insurer’s takeover of the seven-hospital Allegheny network and ongoing feud with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Highmark is starting construction on the REMWorks Sleep Store, at the Waterfront retail mall just outside of Pittsburgh. Set to open in December, ahead of the holidays, the REMWorks will offer “a wide range of solutions and products for people dealing with sleeplessness, sleep apnea, snoring and insomnia.”

It’s a store “unlike anything that’s currently on the market,” and designed to serve a growing problem in the American population, said Amy Phillips, REMWorks director, a nurse and former consumer healthcare products manager who came to Highmark last year as a business innovation consultant.

"Having trouble sleeping is something that, unfortunately, most people will face at some point in their lives," Phillips said. “Our licensed sleep coaches will work with people to understand why they're having trouble sleeping and develop a plan so they can get better sleep."

The sleep market is a growing one, encompassing prescription drugs like Ambien and devices that help manage obstructive sleep apnea, which plagues more than 12 million Americans.

Highmark’s REMWorks — the name invoking what is considered the most important stage of sleep, rapid eye movement, when dreaming is most vivid — will be selling continuous positive airway pressure machines used to help apnea patients breathe easily, along with music and lighting products, bedding and pillows, teas and aromatherapy aids, and sleep solutions for children.

Coaches at the store will also offer education, individualized sleep plans and over-the-counter treatments for issues like insomnia, restless leg syndrome, teeth grinding, sleep terrors, sleep walking, and circadian rhythm problems. Most health insurance plans beyond Highmark will be accepted for services that are clinically-related.

"We saw a market demand that was not being met, and that's what led to the development of the sleep store concept," said Paul Puopolo, Highmark vice president of business innovation and development. "The lack of a good night's sleep does not just affect your mood and productivity. It also can contribute to serious health conditions, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke and depression." 

This article originally appeared on Government Health IT sister site Healthcare Payer News.