Across the country, health care models are changing as startups reimagine how we deliver and receive care in a tech-friendly age.
Namely, the location of care is changing, with the traditional hospital setting being left behind for the comforts of home and ease of technology.
That trend is growing in Denver, as a number of mobile and digital health care startups have raised money and planned expansion in recent months.
Denver behavioral health marketplace SonderMind raised $3M in April, digital urgent care startup CirrusMD raised $15M last week and Agile Orthopedics, a mobile prosthetic and orthotic service, is rapidly growing across the state.
Following that trend, on-demand health care startup DispatchHealth announced that it has raised a $33 million Series B that will allow it to expand its services to markets across the country.
The investment was led by Echo Health Ventures, a strategic collaboration of Cambia Health Solutions and Mosaic Health Solutions, with participation from existing investors Alta Partners and Questa Capital.
“All Americans deserve access to lower cost health care. Our growing senior population is a group that often faces mobility limitations and can benefit from the safe, effective and convenient care that in-home treatment provides,” said Dr. Mark Prather, CEO and co-founder of DispatchHealth. “We're committed to helping all individuals receive the right care, at the right time, in the comfort of their own home or place of need. The financial support and strategic expertise of Echo Health Ventures will allow us to extend our current care model into longer-term, episodic interventions for individuals requiring more advanced treatment.”
Patients in need of care can contact DispatchHealth via mobile app, website or phone call and a medical team will arrive within two hours, equipped with roughly 70 percent of the tools and equipment that are found in a typical emergency room.
DispatchHealth can treat anything an urgent care facility would and more, from cuts and illnesses to urinary tract infections and complications from asthma or diabetes. On average, most patients pay $25 to $50 after insurance for a visit, the company said.
According to the website, DispatchHealth has filled 7,876 care requests across its 10 markets in the last month.
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Prather said this new funding will allow the company to expand to 14 or 15 new markets in the next two years. DispatchHealth plans to choose new markets based on their need for alternative care.
"If you think about the company’s goals -- lower cost of care, improve outcomes and improve satisfaction -- we have to find a reason to go into a market to deliver healthcare,” Prather told Colorado Inno, adding that provider and payor input will help determine expansion locations.
As DispatchHealth grows nationally, Prather said the team will also be building out the company's services, allowing them to have a hand in longer episodes of care. For patients with chronic diseases, DispatchHealth will want to monitor their condition over days, rather than in a single visit.
"We may want to extend that visit to a few days to make sure we can avoid that trip to the hospital," Prather said.
The company currently has more than 350 employees, with half of those located in Denver. Prather said they are currently hiring across multiple cities, but don't have a target number in mind for employee growth.
