So-called ‘personalized medicine’ is all the rage these days. Healthcare is gradually being influenced by data-driven insights gained through what the healthcare industry calls “precision medicine.” The COVID-19 pandemic has made this sector extra urgent. The 15-minute appointment ending in prescription drugs is also being impacted by the advance of remote telemedicine, and this entire arena is now populated by startups.
Although there is a lot of investments in telemedicine, there remains scope for the use of telemedicine in the treatment of chronic diseases using a combination of home care and telemedicine. Other players in this space are CarbonHealth and Dispatch.
This is why it is important that telemedicine-based Index Health has now raised a $6 million seed round. The Miami-based startup says it’s offering a “data-driven and personalized approach” to a medical treatment called ‘Root Cause’ or ‘Functional Medicine’using lab testing, specialized staff and personalization.
The $6 million round was co-led by LAUNCHub Enterprises and Inovo Venture Partners and will be used to hire and expand specialized medical professionals and technical talent across the US, employers, insurance companies and go directly to consumers.
Index Health’s main focus is on cardiovascular disease, diabetes, hormones and autoimmune diseases, with members speaking regularly with their physician and nutritionist. The startup says it collects more than 1,000 data points per single lab test, and each session with a doctor lasts an hour during the months-long course of treatment.
There are also specialist telemedicine providers such as Cerebral (mental health), Hinge (joints), and Virta (diabetes).
That said, a slew of healthcare unicorns have announced layoffs in recent months, including Ro, Cerebral, Forward and Calibrate.
Many companies in the space offer prescription services and OTC medications. Index Health hopes 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 testing, to get the most accurate overview of why a disease occurs. in a person’s body. Based on this data, we create a treatment that is tailored to them and their condition.”
The company is available in Florida, Virginia and New Hampshire.