Frederique Dame’s Post

Venture Capital News - Venture Capital News Headlines

Sobering reality for digital health founders: DarioHealth acquired Twill (Happify Health) for $10m cash + up to $20m stock. *** Join 7,000+ healthcare readers of my newsletter: www.HealthcareAndy.com *** Caveat, I don’t know much about Twill. And this doesn’t discredit their decade of hard work, only reinforces the idea that digital health is hard to scale. Now a ~$30m exit would normally be great. The problem is Twill reportedly raised $123m since 2012, including a $73m series D in 2021 from Deerfield Management. Now the investor details or valuation of that series D round were never disclosed, but safe to say not ideal. And say whatever about “investors not knowing healthcare”, I’m pretty sure the Deerfield team understands healthcare pretty well, so they didn’t go into the investment naive. Upon acquisition, DarioHealth released news that Twill generated $13.8m revenue from Jan-Sep 2023 with high gross margins. Not saying this was the case here, but I’ve heard of other startups raising at 100-200x net revenue back in 2021. It’s a mountain of a climb to grow into those valuations, especially in healthcare where either you’re constrained by regulatory, reimbursement, or too many similar competitors. If we make some assumptions, Twill may have achieved $18-20m 2023 annualized revenue. That’s larger than most companies, especially if their gross margins are high. But ultimately I’m not a financier, I just want more products and services that improve patient outcomes. If Twill does that and this acquisition extends their availability, win-win. What are your thoughts? *** Join 7,000+ healthcare readers of my newsletter: https://lnkd.in/gStrMk3u

In 2022, Marc Harrison decided to leave what he had previously called "the best job in healthcare" — as the CEO of the non-profit health system Intermountain Healthcare — to go work for the venture capital firm General Catalyst. Now, he's explaining why. He aims to start a “revolutionary” healthcare company at General Catalyst by buying a health system that it would own and operate, an unusual move for one of the world's most active healthcare startup investors. The new company — the Healthcare Assurance Transformation Corporation, or HATCo, for short — will own and operate a hospital, offer a proving ground for the technology coming out of General Catalyst’s portfolio companies and a vector through which to spread what’s working to a network of 20 other health system partners. The goal is to lead by example, Harrison told Forbes. “We need to eat our own cooking,” he said. Read more: https://trib.al/ydE2tOZ

In 2022, Marc Harrison decided to leave what he had previously called "the best job in healthcare" — as the CEO of the non-profit health system Intermountain Healthcare — to go work for the venture capital firm General Catalyst. Now, he's explaining why. He aims to start a “revolutionary” healthcare company at General Catalyst by buying a health system that it would own and operate, an unusual move for one of the world's most active healthcare startup investors. The new company — the Healthcare Assurance Transformation Corporation, or HATCo, for short — will own and operate a hospital, offer a proving ground for the technology coming out of General Catalyst’s portfolio companies and a vector through which to spread what’s working to a network of 20 other health system partners. The goal is to lead by example, Harrison told Forbes. “We need to eat our own cooking,” he said. Read more: https://trib.al/s9HnCj5

🎉 BIG NEWS: We've successfully closed Koda Health's Seed+ round! 🎉 This round was led by Ecliptic Capital, with strategic investments from healthcare giants Memorial Hermann Health System, AARP, and TMC Venture Fund. This is a critical inflection point for our company, so it was crucial for us to fill our #fundinground with strategic investors who deeply understood the healthcare market and our end users. Our solutions serve over 700,000 individuals and are backed by endorsements from industry leaders. But as that number continues to grow, our future plans include expanding partnerships, building new tech, and setting new standards in patient care. This influx of support will drive innovations in scale and pave the way for our second product line 🤫 . Stay tuned for updates or get in touch for a sneak peak! 📖 Want to read more? Check out this article in the Associated Press: https://lnkd.in/gvfqtBzN 🙏 Special thanks to Adam Lipman, Amelia Hay, Feby Abraham, William McKeon, David Wong, MD, Amar Rai, Juan Diego Briceño, Samuel White, MD, Matthew Miller, PhD, Jennifer Cunningham, Christopher Kopczynski, Winston Gilpin, Andreas R. Galliker, CFA, Sweksha Jha, MPH, Dr. Toby Hamilton, David Bradshaw, and many more. 🐘 And if you're new here...Desh Mohan, MD, Katelin Cherry, and I started Koda Health in March 2020 out of the Texas Medical Center. Koda Health is a tech-enabled care coordination platform to improve serious illness care planning that has equal rates of engagement across race, gender, and socioeconomic status. In short, we're solving the $100B problem of inappropriate care delivery. Our flagship Advance Care Planning (ACP) solution pairs a cloud-based ACP platform with an in-house 1:1 longitudinal ACP support and navigation. This allows healthcare organizations to provide scalable, personalized ACP without an increased organizational lift. It works, and it's amazing. I wonder we'll build next... 🤔 #funding #healthcareindustry #innovation #ACPforALL #strategiccapital

As the year comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on the incredible journey ElderPRIME has embarked upon. This year has been a testament to the hard work, innovation, and dedication of our entire team, and it's with immense pride that I share some of our standout achievements. We kicked off the year with an ambitious mindset and it quickly paid off when we clinched the Runner-up position at the National Impact Challenge hosted by AGE-WELL NCE Inc. and SE Health. The recognition was a significant milestone, fuelling our commitment to enhancing elder care with cutting-edge solutions. The journey didn't stop there; our innovative approach continued to resonate, earning us the People's Choice award at the same event. This accolade was particularly special as it reflected the community's belief in our mission and the impact of our work. Mid-year, we showcased our innovations at Collision Conf 2023's Startup Showcase. Being part of such a dynamic and influential tech gathering allowed us to network with industry leaders, gain invaluable insights, and spotlight our commitment to transforming elder care. The Fall brought no slowdown, as we attended HLTH in Las Vegas, a gathering of healthcare's most innovative minds. Our efforts were further acknowledged when we reached the Finalist stage of the Nimbus Synergies Health Impact Investor Challenge, produced by Spring. Competing with British Columbia's top health startups, we presented our vision for a sustainable and inclusive future in elder care. This acknowledgment affirmed the potential of our solutions and strengthened our resolve to keep pushing the boundaries. As we look ahead, we're fuelled by the achievements of the past year and excited for the opportunities that lie ahead. Our journey continues, and we are ever grateful for the support, encouragement, and collaboration from our community, partners, and team. Here's to a new year filled with even more milestones, growth, and transformative impact! #ElderPRIME #Innovation #ElderCare #AGEWell #SEHealth #ImpactInvesting #HealthTech #YearInReview

Following our recent Seed+ funding round closure, our CEO Tatiana Fofanova, Ph.D. Fofanova had an insightful dialogue with Jim Parker from Hospice News, shedding light on what lies ahead for us. 🌟 Reflecting on our next steps, Dr. Fofanova shared, "We actually have a contract signed for the second product line as a proof of concept already, and it’s going to be synergistic to the #AdvanceCarePlanning product and set us up quite nicely for the series A." It's a testament to our continuous effort to innovate and provide comprehensive care solutions that truly make a difference. The completion of this significant funding round, led by Ecliptic Capital with pivotal contributions from Memorial Hermann Health System, AARP, and TMC Venture Fund, marks the next chapter in our journey. This capital injection will not only fuel our expansion but also enhance the depth and reach of our impactful #patientengagement solutions. This conversation also touched on the strategic utilization of the new funds, including further technological development, team expansion, and the exploration of new markets. By building on our unique approach to Advance Care Planning, we're setting the stage for even greater achievements in personalized patient care. 🔍 Focused on the future, our goal is clear: to #empowerpatients with the tools they need to make informed healthcare decisions, supported by a platform that bridges, digital convenience with compassionate care. https://lnkd.in/gqC-ZS9f

🔥General Catalyst's bold move to acquire Summa Health isn't just a game-changer; I can't think of a comparable move anywhere in healthcare in the last 20 years. By flipping Summa Health into a for-profit entity while doubling down on community care, this acquisition is like a shot of adrenaline for the industry. 💡 This could set a precedent that healthcare desperately needs. It's all about putting patients first, delivering value-based care, and reshaping the healthcare landscape as we know it. Get ready for the healthcare makeover of the century! [oai_citation:1,4 Takeaways on General Catalyst’s Plan to Acquire Summa Health | AHA](https://lnkd.in/grj_uQjF) [oai_citation:2,Our Acquisition of Summa Health: Coming Together To Transform Healthcare | General Catalyst](https://lnkd.in/gMV3uUNV) #HotTakeOnHealthcare #SummaHealth #GeneralCatalyst #HealthcareRevolution

Not sure what to make of this. A major venture capital firm just announced plans to buy a health system, apparently so they can use it as a proving ground for new technologies. In theory this could go well -- it's being led by Marc Harrison, former CEO of Intermountain, a famously values-driven system -- but I'm concerned it could also simply be a vehicle for pushing new high-cost technologies into an already over-priced healthcare marketplace. Time will tell. #ethicalhealthcare #hippocraticcapitalism #venturecapital #healthcare

Mohana Ravindranath and fellow healthtech founders asked me, "Is it worth it to go to HLTH this year?" For me, no. Several thousand dollars for the ticket ($4k, $1k last year for early startup attendees), flight, lodging, etc: there are more cost-effective ways to raise from investors & compare notes w/other startups. I care most about meeting with whom Odyssey serves. Are Medicaid members and harried, cash-strapped decisionmakers of health systems or community health centers going to be there? No. Then I won't be. https://lnkd.in/giJzJMWq