Healthcare giants invest $200M in digital health benefits startup Transcarent
Three of the nation’s top healthcare systems have invested $200 million into Transcarent, a digital health and benefits management startup, the organizations announced this week.
Northwell Health, Intermountain Healthcare and Rush University Medical Center all contributed to the Series C financing round, bringing Transcarent’s war chest to $298 million and its total valuation to $1.62 billion, according to Forbes.
Both Kinnevik and Human Capital led this round of fundraising, with contributions from Ally Bridge Group and existing investors Merck Global Health Innovation Fund, 7wireVentures and General Catalyst, Alta Partners, Jove Equity Partners, Threshold Ventures and GreatPoint Ventures.
Palo Alto, California-based Transcarent bills itself as a “new and different” company catering to self-insured employers and their employees, offering concierge medicine without premiums. The startup operates using an at-risk model in which it pays providers without charging upfront, monthly, per-employee fees, according to the announcement.
“For years, we’ve been anxiously waiting for more wide-ranging reform towards value in the healthcare industry and felt it has never been fully addressed — mostly because no one entity was willing to build a better end-to-end health and care experience from the ground up,” Christian Scherrer, investment manager for Kinnevik, said in a statement. “We see Transcarent as the first company to address the challenge head on in a new and different way that is focused, first and foremost, on the consumer.”
Transcarent has grown quickly, merging with BridgeHealth, a startup offering employers access to pre-negotiated rates on hundreds of surgeries, in October 2020. The firm also announced a partnership with Walmart in October 2021 to provide low-cost pharmaceuticals and other services to self-insured employers and their families.
Matt joined Chicago’s TriMed team in 2018 covering all areas of health imaging after two years reporting on the hospital field. He holds a bachelor’s in English from UIC, and enjoys a good cup of coffee and an interesting documentary.