Launch Health check-up: Spoke Health aims to give consumers value-based choices in care
November 15, 2019 | Austin Barnes and Tommy Felts
Editor’s note: The following is part of a series of stories on the six cohort companies of the Launch Health Accelerator, powered by Nueterra Capital and sponsored by LaunchKC. Click here to read all the stories published in this series.
Medical experiences are taxing — Spoke Health aims to cut the stress and give patients peace of mind, said Linda Bernier.
“Our two founders both lived internationally and when they experienced a great care experience with cash pay, they asked, ‘Why can’t this be accessible for everyone?’” Bernier, Spoke Health CEO, said of the startup’s inception as a medical tourism company.
“Our founder Jason [Coppage] went to a hospital, his wife was about to have a baby and the hospital said, ‘Here’s your package, here’s what is included, would you like an upgraded double bedroom? This is the meal plan. Here’s what you get pre and post-delivery — this is $3,000.”
Such transparency further motivated Coppage to bring Denver, Colorado-based Spoke Health to life in 2016, Bernier said, explaining the company’s evolution from a medical tourism platform to a technology company, focused on value-based healthcare.
“We have a technology platform that facilitates the steerage, if you will, of employees into high-quality, low-cost care and helps them select a provider, understand their benefits and incentives provided by their employer,” she said.
Looking to evolve the healthtech platform, Spoke Health joined the first cohort of the Launch Health Accelerator, powered by Nueterra Capital and backed by LaunchKC.
“It has been a really great experience from the standpoint of providing exposure to companies in Kansas City, the coaching and mentorship from both the Nueterra folks and from the folks who have come in to present to us,” Bernier said.
Click here to read more about the inaugural cohort and a full list of participating companies
The connections, exposure and guidance that come with a place in the cohort are but a few of the valuable resources Launch Health affords Spoke Health — which hopes to reach more employers looking to offer their team flexible and modern healthcare options, she added.
“In the United States, there’s lack of transparency, lack of competition and lack of great, packaged experiences. We use that as the chassis,” Bernier said. “Employers are really looking for that and [Spoke Health] can offer it.”
Click here for more on the Launch Health demo day, set for Nov. 20.
This story is possible thanks to support from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, a private, nonpartisan foundation that works together with communities in education and entrepreneurship to create uncommon solutions and empower people to shape their futures and be successful.
For more information, visit www.kauffman.org and connect at www.twitter.com/kauffmanfdn and www.facebook.com/kauffmanfdn
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