Forward Health is an entirely new ‘concierge’ healthcare system empowering doctors with technology and data to monitor and guide health outcomes.

Forward Health raised $225 million in Series D funding with participation from Founders Fund, Khosla Ventures, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Marc Benioff, and The Weeknd, among others. The funding will help the tech-centric primary healthcare startup expand its services across the U.S.  (BusinessWire)

How it works

Forward Health provides proactive healthcare by involving members, doctors, and technology to customize a program best suited to the member’s health conditions. Typically prospective patients come in for a baseline evaluation that would include over 500 unique biomarkers. This evaluation could last for as long as 60 minutes compared to just 15 minutes for conventional healthcare systems.

The health plan is then structured around the results from the testing. The forward-looking and proactive plan emphasizes the identification and treatment of issues before they become problems. For this purpose, the doctors rely on continuous biometric and behavioral data monitoring of the member.

The cost to the member is a flat fee per month and there is no need for co-pays or insurance. It includes an actual relationship with a doctor, the Care Team and always-on support, ongoing monitoring and data visibility in the app, and access to six doctor-led programs.

Pandemic issues

“The pandemic has further exposed the limitations of traditional healthcare, and the band-aid of telehealth alone does not solve the problem. We’re grateful that our investors have recognized this and are backing a new healthcare system that requires no insurance and no copay,” said Adrian Aoun, Chief Executive Officer, and co-founder, Forward Health.

“Rather than visiting a doctor when you’re sick, Forward proactively works to keep you healthy by utilizing advanced technologies such as remote biometrics monitoring and app-based care,” said Jeff Housenbold, Managing Partner, SoftBank Investment Advisers. “With the traditional healthcare system under stress and people reticent about visiting crowded facilities, there has never been a greater need or better time to rethink healthcare from the ground up.”

Use of funds

Forward Health will use the new funding to expand its healthcare system across the country by opening several new locations in the first half of the year.

The company also intends to develop new doctor-led programs focused on heart health, cancer detection, COVID-19, stress, anxiety, and weight management.

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