Investing in inclusivity
According to Rock Health’s Digital Health Consumer Adoption survey last year, 85% of transgender respondents and 33% of LGBQA+ respondents delayed necessary medical care, compared to 20% of cisgender and 24% of heterosexual respondents. To help address the need for culturally competent and inclusive care, digital startups serving LGBTQ+ people have raised close to $200M so far this year. In fact, despite overall digital health funding taking a dip with amounts raised through Q3 totaling 43% of last year’s total, funding for LGBTQ+-focused startups have pulled in 70% of last year’s total—demonstrating that investors are not shying away from the opportunity. Last week, LGBTQ+ online clinic Folx raised $30M and rolled out digital support groups, following recent raises from gender-affirming virtual provider Plume and inclusivity-minded clinician training startup Violet. Outside of funding, Included Health partnered with SCAN Health Plan to roll out a Medicare Advantage plan specifically for older LGBTQ+ adults. And with resources like The LGBTQ+ Healthcare Directory launching to provide a free, searchable database of LGBTQ+-competent care professionals, we’re hopeful that future Consumer Adoption data will tell a different story.
Headlines
Digital Health Venture Funding Pulls Back From Last Year’s Rush
Startups have raised $12.6B in 2022 through Q3 The Wall Street Journal
Health Insurance Prices Went Up Nearly 30% Over The Past Year
The highest yearly increase since records began in 2005 Quartz
Walmart To Compete With Walgreens, CVS In Recruiting Clinical Trial Subjects
Goal is for clinics and pharmacies to become a “funnel” for healthcare orgs seeking diverse populations Reuters
Digital Health Technologies In Clinical Trials
The rise of digital health in clinical trials by sponsor type PRISM
Employers Expand Reproductive Health Benefits Amid Tight Labor Market
Fertility benefits are becoming more common among large employers Axios
Recent Funding
- Medicaid-focused virtual behavioral and mental health provider Brave Health finds $40M
- Folx Health lands $30M to expand its suite of virtual care services for the LGBTQ+ community
- NeuroFlow nabs $25M to grow its mental health patient engagement and management suite
- Federated learning software for medical research Rhino Health grabs $6.7M
- Adonis raises $5.6M to streamline medical billing with AI
- Healthcare-specialized CRM and workflow automation solution Liine closes on $3M