Behavioral health startup Quartet Health has raised a $60 million Series D financing round led by major insurer Centene.
Centene’s investment will drive growth at the New York-based company and expand access to behavioral health resources to traditionally underserved Medicaid patients, which make up a large portion of the insurer’s membership base.
Quartet was founded in 2014 and has raised a total of $153 million from investors. The company has developed a central technology platform that allows for physicians, mental health providers and payers to coordinate care and drive down health costs.
Quartet’s theory is that by sharing treatment plans, clinical notes and assessment results, care providers will be more informed and attuned to individual patient needs.
The intersection between mental and physical health is even more acute among the Medicaid population where the average spend of a beneficiary with mental health conditions is four times that of someone without similar issues.
Alongside the new funding, Quartet is also announcing an expansion of its platform that opens up the ability of clinically-adjacent providers and workers at community-based organizations like case managers to access the platform and collaborate on care.
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.
This holds particular relevance to Medicaid beneficiaries who often have federal health center workers and non-clinical professionals like social workers as part of their care team.
Centene is the process of acquiring fellow insurer WellCare, which would strengthen the company’s position in the Medicaid market, where it would rank first among insurers by membership.
The companies expect the deal to close by the first half of 2020.
“We are committed to building a health care system in which every person with a mental health condition gets the care they need,” Quartet CEO David Wennberg said in a statement.
“In all we do, the patient is our north star. Centene’s partnership enables us to continue to support the experience of individuals in need of mental health care services, including Medicaid beneficiaries and their team of care providers.”
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