Three health tech startups and spinouts announced today a merger to become a single entity focused on delivering virtual-care products and population health insights for seniors.
Curavi Health, CarePointe and U.S. Health Systems (USHS) are set to become wholly owned subsidiaries of the new company, Arkos Health, and the executive teams of each will be merged.
UPMC's existing stake in Curavi (which it spun out back in 2016) will continue to apply to Arkos Health, and the provider and insurer remain a customer and service provider of the new entity.
“With Arkos Health, providers and payers can effectively deliver quality care to frail seniors through a customized mobile and virtual platform using performance-based business models,” Dr. Amish Purohit, CEO of USHS, said in a statement. “Curavi, CarePointe and USHS have all demonstrated an ability to improve clinical outcomes while reducing costs, and together we will continue to elevate our clients’ experiences by providing differentiated care.”
WHAT'S THE IMPACT?
Collectively, the three have about a decade of experience in the market, and plan to weave their respective areas of expertise into a multipart offering for payer and provider customers.
According to the announcement, both Las Vegas-based CarePointe and Tempe, Arizona-based USHS will be responsible for handling care coordination. The companies' already have integrated platforms focused on managing complex populations and delivering post-acute services, which they say are already employed among more than 110,000 seniors.
Curavi, meanwhile, was founded to support remote-care programs using proprietary software and a telemedicine cart designed to accommodate nursing home workflows. Having so far facilitated roughly 60,000 consults to date, it will be deliver these services to customers and patients hand in hand with Arkos Health's other integrated capabilities.
“By combining Curavi’s telemedicine technology, CarePointe’s unified software solution and analytics and USHS’s population health management capabilities, Arkos Health will be able to serve both payers and providers by facilitating high-quality in-home and virtual care for their members and patients who need it,” Alissa Meade, Curavi president and CEO, said in a statement. “At a time when our shared mission to care for the frail elderly is more important than ever, uniting these organizations allows for an integrated health care experience that better meets the needs of our seniors.”
THE LARGER TREND
Providers, advocacy groups and public health experts have long sounded the alarm on new demands being driven by the swelling population of seniors in the U.S., and a fair number of digital health companies have stepped up to extend the reach of remote, connected aging-care technologies. These range from app-based ecosystems designed for family caregivers, consumer technologies designed to enable senior communications and monitoring, digital marketplaces for home care services, and no shortage of robotic or artificial intelligence companions.
M&A activity has also generally been on the rise in 2020. Halfway through the year, MobiHealthNews has tracked dozens of deals highlighting clear consolidation within segments of the digital health market.
