Several app developers are trying to dismantle the accepted tradition of waiting around for healthcare services from doctor appointments to emergency care. ZappRx, launched an app earlier this year to reduce the amount of time consumers wait around for prescription medication at their local pharmacy. Now it’s raised seed funding to develop the app into an effective patient engagement tool and time-saving device to make picking up prescriptions more efficient.
The company founded by Zoe Barry has raised $1 million from a mix of angel and venture investors in a seed round led by Atlas Ventures, an early stage technology and life science investor. It also raised funds from the Life Science Angel Network and other individual angel investors, according to a company statement.
ZappRx also adding a group of advisers including Jay Silverstein, founding member of Oxford Health, Will Cowen, founder and CEO of healthcare communications network NaviNet, and George Kassabgi, founder of corporate wellness program provider Keas.com.
The app is still in beta and being tested by two doctors at the New York-Presbyterian and Weill Cornell Medical Center and Zitomer Pharmacy.
The idea when the app hits the market is to help patients order and pay for prescriptions electronically. Pharmacists will be able to pre-process insurance information and communicate digitally with the prescriber, according to the statement.
It is also designed to comply with HIPAA and Meaningful Use 2 regulations, according to the company.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
There’s a substantial market opportunity for companies that get the balance right between technology and engagement since about 172 million patients take prescription medication in the U.S.
