So-called “personalized medicine” is all the rage these days. Healthcare is being gradually affected by data-driven insights gleaned through what the healthcare sector calls “precision medicine.” The COVID-19 pandemic has added urgency to this sector. The 15-minute appointment that ends in prescription medicine is also being affected by the advance of remote telemedicine, and this whole arena is now being populated by startups.
Although there is plenty of investment in telemedicine, there remains a space for using telemedicine in treating chronic diseases using a hybrid of in-home care and telemedicine. Other players in this space include CarbonHealth and Dispatch.
This is why it’s of interest that telemedicine-based Index Health has now raised a $6 million seed round. The Miami-based startup says it offers “data-driven and personalized approach” to a medical treatment called “root cause” or “functional Medicine,” using lab tests, specialized staff and personalization.
The $6 million round was co-led by LAUNCHub Ventures and Inovo Venture Partners and will be used to hire specialized medical professionals, engineering talent and expand across the U.S., employers, insurance companies and go direct to consumers.
Index Health’s main focus is on cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hormones and auto-immune conditions, where its members regularly speak to their physician and nutritionist. The startup says it collects over 1,000+ data points per single lab test and each session with a physician is an hour during the months-long course of treatment.
There are also specialized telemedicine providers such as Cerebral (mental health), Hinge (joints) and Virta (diabetes).
That said a string of healthcare unicorns have announced layoffs over the past few months, including Ro, Cerebral, Forward and Calibrate.
Many companies in the space offer prescription services and OTC drugs. Index Health is hoping its data-driven, personalized approach, combined with telemedicine will be the more winning formula in “root-cause medicine.”
In a statement, CEO Luka Ivicevic — who previously co-founded a German challenger bank — said:
With Root Cause Medicine, we collect 1,000+ data-points using advanced lab tests, to make the most precise overview of why a disease is occurring in an individual’s body. Based on this data, we make a treatment that’s personalized for them and their condition.
The company is available in Florida, Virginia and New Hampshire.
