Baltimore incubator 1501 Health on Wednesday announced the seven companies that will participate in its second cohort of health-focused startups.
The year-long program from LifeBridge Health and Healthworx (the innovation and investment arm of CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield), aims to help early-stage companies develop and scale their health care solutions through expert mentoring support, educational events and $100,000 in investment capital for each cohort member.
The seven innovative startups hail from California to the East Coast — with one based in the United Kingdom — and aim to solve a range of health care challenges, from pain management and patient monitoring to family planning and senior care.
This year's program will follow a hybrid approach, allowing for both in-person and virtual meetings and flexibility as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to evolve. The first cohort program was done virtually.
Scroll down to meet the new cohort startups.
1501 Health, which operates out of CareFirst's headquarters in Canton, received 112 applications from companies across the globe to participate in the second cohort. Ultimately, they selected the seven startups based on criteria that included the business' viability (its traction, entrepreneur, product-market fit and funding), strategic fit (how it can improve the lives and health outcomes of CareFirst members and LifeBridge patients) and support request (if the program can actually help the company and add value to overall health care innovation).
“There is such diversity in this cohort in terms of backgrounds, solutions and stages of development,” said Jordan Evans, 1501 Health co-manager and innovation project manager at LifeBridge, in a statement. “All of them tackle some of the most pressing issues in health care today but from such varied backgrounds and solutions-oriented mindsets. We are excited to see what heights they can reach in this cohort.”
Six of the seven cohort companies were founded by women.
1501 Health graduated its first cohort of five companies late last year after launching in the spring. Graduates include two Maryland companies, Even Health and Live Chair. Even Health, as well as 1501 Health, were both selected this month as recipients of the Baltimore Business Journal's 2022 Fire Awards, which seeks to honor outstanding innovators in the local tech and innovation industry.
Co-founder and CEO of Even Health, David Black, said in a statement that the incubator helped him and the other cohort members figure out how their innovations could be adopted into the existing network of health care solutions and products. So far, Even Health has raised close to $2 million and recently won a $1.7 million contract with the U.S. Air Force.
"Without 1501 Health’s support, I suspect we would have spent a good deal of time pursuing an incorrect path for growth and adoption in our solution, and every startup knows that we have limited windows of opportunity to make the right decisions to reach new stages of growth,” Black added.
Here are the seven companies in the second cohort, with descriptions from 1501 Health:
- Candoo Tech (New York City) helps older adults stay safe, independent and connected by educating them on utilizing digital tools designed for daily use, such as Instacart and Uber. In addition, Candoo offers tech concierge services for troubleshooting, installation help and other digital needs.
- Flowly (Los Angeles) helps users manage pain and anxiety through virtual reality experiences as an alternative to medication. Backed by NIH clinical trial data, Flowly uses an integrative medicine approach to care using VR technology at home.
- Frame Fertility (San Francisco) serves as a prospective parent’s personalized fertility guide, offering an assessment to identify barriers to fertility, followed by personalized coaching and care navigation to reduce costly and unnecessary fertility treatments.
- Health in Her Hue (New York City) empowers Black women and women of color along their health care journey by reducing racial disparities in the way care is delivered. Leveraging the power of technology, they connect women of color with culturally competent providers and supportive communities.
- Lantern (New York City) guides users through death and loss at all stages. The platform can guide users in end-of-life pre-planning. Several supports offered include establishing a legacy, providing clarity for family before the event, or assisting grieving family members in managing someone’s affairs with helpful checklists.
- Ryse Health (Arlington, Virginia and Baltimore) is an endocrinology practice using tech-enabled solutions and community-based supports to help patients manage type 2 diabetes. The care team utilizes digital applications to check in with patients frequently to follow up on each patient’s custom care plan.
- Xploro (Manchester, UK) delivers a platform that’s designed for children with preexisting conditions and illnesses, and tested by an advisory board of 12 children aged 9-17. The digital engagement platform uses 3D models and gamification to increase health literacy for children.
