Insurance startup Bright Health raised another $500 million, as it plans to expand into new markets and offer small group plans. The company, which was co-founded in 2015 by former UnitedHealthcare CEO Bob Sheehy, offers individual market plans and Medicare Advantage plans. It uses a narrow-network model that involves partnering closely with one health system in each market.
Investment firms Tiger Global Management, T Rowe Price and Blackstone led the funding round. New Enterprise Associates, which led the startup’s $635 million funding round last year, also participated in the recent investment. To date, Bright Health has raised more than $1.5 billion.
The Minneapolis-based company currently operates in 43 markets across 13 states, a significant expansion from December, when it was in 22 markets and 12 states. It plans to use the funds to expand to new markets and roll out a small-group plan for employers.
“By aligning with our Care Partners, we have created a more personalized, affordable and convenient end-to-end health care experience for consumers,” Bright Health CEO Mike Mikan said in a news release. “This funding allows us to continue to scale our transformative model and fulfill our purpose of lowering health care costs while improving outcomes, experience and access.”
Going into 2021, Bright Health plans to offer Medicare Advantage and ACA marketplace plans in six new markets between Florida, North Carolina and Illinois.
The startup also is building out its presence in employer-sponsored health insurance. It plans to offer fully insured small business plans in Denver, Nashville, Memphis and Nebraska. It also plans to offer level-funded plans for companies with 20 to 100 employees and offer administrative services to large, self-insured employers.
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.
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