Blueprint Health will add a second class later this year following the massive response the start-up accelerator received for its inaugural spring class for healthcare IT companies.
Blueprint, led by Mathew Farkash and Dr. Brad Weinberg, received 300 applications for a class of nine. The company has been able to build an ensemble of 120 mentors from different segments of the healthcare sector, serial entrepreneurs and investor communities.
“We have built what amounts to the largest healthcare community out there,” said Farkash, who added the accelerator was ideally situated in New York.
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“There’s no better place than New York to start a healthcare company. It’s a great ecosystem of thriving companies — from ZocDoc to WebMD, incredible hopsitals including New York Presbyterian and Montefiore, the most doctors of any city in the U.S. and an entrepreneurial supportive government led by Mayor [Michael] Bloomberg.”
One substantial differentiator for Blueprint Health is the technology-based solutions its class of startups is offering to healthcare facilities, pharmaceutical and payer businesses, said Farkash. “We want to make sure that the right problems are being addressed for the healthcare industry’s pain points and that [the industry companies] would be prepared to pay for it.”
Blueprint has benefited from being in the TechStars’ network, which has helped cultivate the referrals that helped it build up the mentor program.
“It was a meticulous process to build that community,” Farkash said. “What’s important for healthcare companies is access to the buy side.”
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Its group of specialized mentors provide a holistic view of the healthcare space that can help the accelerator’s startups understand some of the pressing issues in the space such as workflow and reimbursement.
