Mountain View, California-based Health IQ Insurance Services is continuing its growth trajectory with the help of a new $55 million Series D financing round led by Greenspring Associates, Aquiline Technology Growth and Hanwha Asset Management.
Existing investors including Andreessen Horowitz also took part in the round which brought the company’s total funding haul to $140 million.
Health IQ started selling policies in 2016 based on rewarding individuals living healthier lifestyles with lower life insurance rates.
The company uses an online health quiz and data analysis to determine personalized pricing discounts tied to healthier living. Individuals who can document that they exercise or meet certain fitness thresholds are also given additional discounts.
“Consumers are responding well to our lower rates. Our company has reached $21 billion in client coverage and is adding an additional $2 billion every few weeks. Since our last funding announcement in 2017 our coverage amount has tripled. Health IQ has grown from seven billion to 21 billion in coverage,” Health IQ CEO Munjal Shah said in a statement.
The company functions as a managing general agent, a specialized insurance broker that can perform underwriting and pricing functions, allowing it to offer discounted policy rates. Health IQ earns money from insurance carriers like Ameritas, Prudential, Assurity, and SBLI, when it successfully sells a policy through its service.
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.
The company said that the average life insurance client for the company will save $4,289 with rate savings and up to $6,279 through underwriting savings over the course of a 30-year policy.
The company has expanded its product offerings to special rate life insurance for well managed diabetics and special rate disability insurance.
Max Chee with Aquiline Technology Growth said his firm sees Health IQ as part of a trend of “precision insurance” which uses data and science to more accurately price policies for clients.
Life insurance companies have increasingly focused on developing methodologies to select healthier policy holders and keeping them healthy through rewards tied to behaviors like reaching fitness goals, purchasing healthy food and getting regular health screenings.
Last year, Boston, Massachusetts-based life insurance carrier John Hancock Insurance announced it would switch all of its policyholders to “interactive policies” which ties premium discounts to healthy actions.
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