News roundup: Transcarent raises $126M; 98point6 lays off; Oscar notches first profit; Steward Health’s Ch. 11; Amazon Clinic GM leaves; Amwell’s down but hopeful Q1; Hims founder gets political

May 8, 2024 | by

A study in contrasts

Already well-funded Transcarent gains another $126 million in a Series D round. Total outside funding is $424 million that boosts its valuation to $2.2 billion. This round will fund expansion and development efforts plus enhancing the platform’s AI capabilities. The Series D round was led by General Catalyst and Glen Tullman’s 7wireVentures, with participation from new investors Memorial Hermann Health System and Geodesic Capital, along with existing investors. As noted in our Rock Health analysis (but not in the company’s release), this raise had a ‘sweetener’ of a 2.5x return should the company IPO or M&A.  Transcarent is an enterprise health navigator that enables employees to use a single platform to navigate their needs for medical, surgery, pharmacy, and mental health care. Transcarent’s differentiator in this space for large self-insured employers is that Transcarent steers employees to higher quality, lower cost care settings. Their pricing is also based on actual users only in risk-based agreements, versus the more common per member per month (PMPM) care management model. Transcarent also pays health systems up front for surgical procedures.

Tullman, who is also Transcarent’s CEO, is well known for creating high profile companies that eventually are sold or IPO’d for high valuations. These deals make his followers money, but often not the buyers (ask Teladoc) or the employees left in the lurch. This Editor does wonder, given the state of US business right now, how this competitive enterprise care management niche earns this kind of investment and valuation. Release, Mobihealthnews 

One of Transcarent’s buys last year was 98point6’s virtual care and related assets that included 98point6’s physician group, self-insured employer business, and an irrevocable software license in a deal worth potentially $100 million according to publicity. 98point6 then had a well publicized and $32 million-financed pivot to being a software company and licensor, acquiring remaining assets from asynchronous telehealth provider Bright.md this past January for 55% in equity and 45% in cash. Despite all this, little noted was that at the end of April was that 98point6 laid off an undisclosed number of its estimated 100 US-based staff. One wonders if this affects service to Bright.md’s provider customers. GeekWire

On the health plan side, rebooted insurtech Oscar Health finally got into the black with $177.4 million in net income for Q1 and beat earnings per share estimates. It’s no surprise to those of us who’ve followed the modus operandi of Mark Bertolini, who took the reins a year ago March [TTA 30 Mar 2023] and stated at the time that his focus was moving Oscar to profitability. Total revenue was $2.1 billion, a 46% increase versus Q1 2023, driven primarily by higher membership, rate increases, and lower risk adjustment as a percentage of premiums. Release. Becker’s, FierceHealthcare Their full 2024 is projected at $8.3 to $8.4 billion in revenue, $125 to $175 million in adjusted EBIDTA. Oscar solely offers ACA exchange plans for individuals and small groups, having exited Medicare Advantage after 2022. Release

Steward Health Care filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy on 6 May. As forecast when the company moved to sell its provider group Stewardship Health to Optum [TTA 18 Apr], Steward’s debt load in its 31 hospitals and operations forced the restructuring on Monday. What’s owed: $1.2 billion in total loan debts, about $6.6 billion in long-term lease payments, north of $600 million to 30 of its largest lenders (Change Healthcare, Philips North America LLC, Medline Industries, AYA Healthcare and Cerner). There’s $289.8 million in unpaid compensation obligations: $68 million to its own workers in unpaid employee salaries, $105.6 million in payments for physician services and $47.7 million owed to staffing agencies. Topping it off–$979.4 million outstanding in trade obligations, of which approximately 70% are over 120 days past due.

Debtor-in-possession is now Medical Properties Trust (MPT) which will finance $75 million up front extending to $225 million more if Steward’s asset selloff milestones are completed on time. MPT will need to be far more forthcoming about Steward’s finances than Steward has been. The Stewardship Health sale to Optum now has to pass through the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas as well as Massachusetts regulators. Becker’s, Healthcare Dive 6 May, 7 May

Amazon Clinic loses its general manager, Nworah Ayogu, MD. He departed for Thrive Capital, a secretive VC (based on its website) that invests in technology, internet, and software companies. Dr. Ayogu, who doubled as chief medical officer of Amazon Pharmacy, stated the move will enable him to focus “exclusively on healthcare” after nearly four years with Amazon. He launched Clinic in November 2022 to a full 50-state rollout of the asynchronous and synchronous telehealth service last August, after a privacy challenge that escalated to the Senatorial level and forced a rollout delay [TTA 1 Aug 2023]. It sounds more like the doctor needs to go on a break. Amazon has not announced a replacement nor has Thrive issued any information. Becker’s, Modern Healthcare

Amwell’s soft Q1 reflective of telehealth as a whole. Its Q1 revenue of $59.5 million was 7% below Q1 2023’s $64 million, and missed Mr. Market’s forecasts. Where there was improvement was that net loss narrowed considerably to $73.4 million from prior year’s $398.5 million, when it took a hefty non-cash goodwill impairment charge. The bright spot Amwell is forecasting is that their Federal contract with Defense Health Agency, jointly with Leidos, will impact by Q4. Their part of the Digital First initiative for the Military Health System (MHS) will replace the current system, MHS Video Connect, with Amwell Converge [TTA 15 May]. Their pending NYSE stock delisting they plan to remedy with a reverse stock split to be announced.  Healthcare Dive, Amwell’s SEC Form 10-Q

Hims CEO and founder Andrew Dudum Does a Dumb. Mr. Dudum made a statement that on X that was interpreted by most to be encouraging the disruptive anti-Israel university and elsewhere protests which have roiled cities like New York and Los Angeles for weeks and are canceling graduations at Columbia University and University of Southern California. A statement like “If you’re currently protesting against the genocide of the Palestinian people & for your university’s divestment from Israel, keep going. It’s working.” and went on to say that companies would be eager to hire them is plain and clear. It immediately garnered criticism from investment group, industry, and software heads, as well as conservative and moderate media. This Editor will put on her marketing cap and remind Mr. Dudum of Marketing 101–be memorable, but do not offend the customer or investors who give you money. You have, after all, a company that depends upon appealing to a wide spectrum of people with easy and recurring telehealth prescriptions for hair loss, weight loss, skin problems, women’s health concerns, and erectile dysfunction. Your statement was not only completely unnecessary but also inflammatory at a bad time–it offended many customers no matter what religion or beliefs. Stock dropped. Customers canceled. Note to Mr. Dudum: if you want a thriving business, don’t live up to your name. FoxBusiness

Health tech bubble watch: Rock Health’s mid-2019 funding assessment amid Big IPOs (updated: Health Catalyst, Livongo, more)

July 25, 2019 | by

Updated for IPOs and analysis. The big time IPOs add extra bubbles to the digital health bath. Rock Health’s mid-year digital health market update continues its frothy way with a topline of $4.2 bn across 180 deals invested in digital health during the first half of 2019. 2019 is tracking to last year’s spending rate across fewer deals and is projected to end the year at $8.4 bn and 360 deals versus 2018’s $8.2 bn and 376 deals.

This year has been notable for Big IPOs, which have been absent from the digital health scene for three years. Exits come in three flavors: mergers and acquisitions (43 in their count so far), IPOs, and shutdowns (like Call9). IPOs are a reasonable outcome of last year’s trend of mega deals over $100 million and a more direct way for VCs to return their money to investors. So far in 2019, 30 percent of venture dollars went to these mega deals. (Rock Health tracks only US digital health deals over $2 million, so not a global picture.)

Reviewing the IPOs and pending IPOs to date:

  • Practice intake and patient management system Phreesia closed its NYSE IPO of 10.7 million shares at $18 per share on 22 July. The company earned approximately $140.6 million and the total gross proceeds to the selling stockholders were approximately $51.6 million for a value over $600 million. The market cap as of 26 July exceeded $949 million with shares rising past $26. Not bad for a company that raised a frugal $92.6 million over seven rounds since 2005.  Yahoo Finance, Crunchbase
  • Chronic condition management company Livongo’s picture is frothier. Their 22 July SEC filing has their IPO at 10.7 million shares at $24 to $26 per share offered on NASDAQ. This would total a $267.5 million raise and a $2.2 bn valuation. This is a stunning amount for a company with reportedly $55 million at the end of its most recent reporting period, increasing losses, and rising cash burn. Livongo raised $235 million since 2014 from private investors. Crunchbase 
  • Analytics company Health Catalyst’s IPO, which will probably take place this week on NASDAQ with Livongo’s, expects to float 7 million shares. Shares will be in a range of $24 to $25 with a raise in excess of $171 million. Their quarterly revenue is above $35 million with an operating loss of $9.8 million. Since 2008, they’ve raised $377 million. IPO analysts call both Livongo’s and Health Catalyst’s IPOs ‘essentially oversubscribed’. Investors Business Daily, Crunchbase
    • UPDATE: Both Livongo and Health Catalyst IPOs debuted on Thursday 25 July, with Livongo raising $356 million on an upsized 12.7 million shares at $28/share, while Health Catalyst’s 7 million shares brought in $182 million at $26/share.  Friday’s shares closed way up from the IPOs Livongo at $38.12 and $38.30 for Health Catalyst. Bubbly indeed! Investors Business Daily, Yahoo Finance
  • Change Healthcare is also planning a NASDAQ IPO at a recently repriced $13 per share, raising $557.7 million from 42.8 million shares. With the IPO, Change is also offering an equity raise and senior amortizing note to pay off its over $5 bn in debt. The excruciating details are here. Investors here are taking a much bigger chance than with the above IPOs, but the market action above will be a definite boost for Change.
  • Connected fitness device company Peloton, after raising $900 million, is scheduled to IPO soon after a confidential SEC filing. (UPDATED–Ed. Note: Included as in the Rock Health report; however this Editor believes that their continued inclusion of Peleton in digital health is specious and should be disregarded by those looking at actual funding trends in health tech.) Forbes

Rock Health itself raised the ‘bubble’ question in considering 2018 results. Their six points of a bubble are:

  1. Hype supersedes business fundamentals
  2. High cash burn rates
  3. High valuations decoupled from fundamentals
  4. Surge of cash from new investors
  5. Fraud or misuse of funds
  6. Unclear exit pathways

This Editor’s further analysis of these six points [TTA 21 Jan] wasn’t quite as reassuring as Rock Health’s. As in 2018, #2, #3, and #6 are rated ‘moderately bubbly’ with even Rock Health admitting that #2 had some added froth. #3–high valuations decoupled from fundamentals–is, in this Editor’s experience, the most daunting, as as it represents the widest divergence from reality and is the least fixable. The three new ‘digital health unicorns’ they cite are companies you’ve likely never heard of and in ‘interesting’ but not exactly mainstream niches in health tech except, perhaps, for the last: Zipline (medicine via drone to clinics in Rwanda and Ghana), Gympass (corporate employee gym passes), and Hims (prescription service and delivery).

Editor’s opinion: When there are too many companies with high valuations paired with a high ‘huh?’ quotient (#3)–that one is slightly incredulous at the valuation granted ‘for that??’–it’s time to take a step back from the screen and do something constructive like rebuild an engine or take a swim. Having observed or worked for companies in bubbles since 1980 in three industries– post-deregulation airlines in the 1980s, internet (dot.com) from the mid-1990s to 2001, first stage telecare/telehealth (2006-8), and healthcare today (Theranos/Outcome Health), a moderate bubble never, ever deflates–it expands, then bursts. The textbook #3 was the dot.com boom/bust; it not only fried internet companies but many vendors all over the US and kicked off a recession.

Rock Health also downplayed #5, fraud and misuse of funds. It’s hard to tell why with troubles around uBiome, Nurx, and Cleo in the news, Teladoc isn’t mentioned, but their lack of disclosure for a public company around critical NCQA accreditation only two months ago and their 2018 accounting problems make for an interesting omission [TTA 16 May]. (And absurdly, they excluded Theranos from 2018’s digital health category, yet include drones, gym passes, connected fitness devices…shall we go on?)

Rock Health’s analysis goes deeper on the private investment picture, particularly their interesting concept of ‘net liquidity overhang’, the amount of money where investors have yet to realize any return, as an indicator of the pressure investors have to exit. Pressure, both in healthcare and in early-stage companies, is a double-edged sword. There’s also a nifty annual IPO Watch List which includes the five above and why buying innovation works for both early-stage and mature healthcare companies. 

(Editor’s final note: The above is not to be excessively critical of Rock Health’s needed analysis, made available to us for free, but in line with our traditionally ‘gimlety’ industry view.)