Rising healthcare prices are a main concern for employers in 2024 as they battle inflation, supplier shortages and growing drug prices. After elevating $4.8 million in seed funding final week, one startup goals to drive price financial savings for employers and staff by way of its AI-driven platform.
New York Metropolis-based Milu Well being works with self-insured employers and advisors and connects with digital well being data (with staff’ consent). It then makes use of AI to parse by way of the data, in addition to the worker’s well being plan, to search out methods for them to entry better-quality care at a lower cost. It then sends textual content notifications to let sufferers learn about potential price financial savings, equivalent to if a medical invoice is presumably incorrect, in the event that they’re eligible for monetary assist, if they’ll save on their prescription or if there’s a profit that they don’t learn about.
The $4.8 million seed spherical was led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) Bio + Well being and included participation from BoxGroup, PagsGroup and 81 Assortment.
With the financing, the corporate is targeted on proving that its platform works earlier than scaling, in line with Sasha Gribov, co-founder of Milu.
“For us, the secret is, let’s elevate a significant spherical that lets us construct very deep relationships with a couple of employers and some brokers and advisors and show that we are able to really lower your expenses for employers and staff,” Gribov stated in an interview. “If we are able to try this, then funding the corporate sooner or later isn’t going to be an issue.”
Milu’s funding comes at a time when many employers are integrating level options into their well being plan, however staff usually aren’t conscious of all the things that’s out there to them. Milu’s platform helps clear up that problem by directing staff to low-cost choices of their plan, stated Gautam Kumar, co-founder of Milu.
“I believe having the ability to pull within the real-time information after which drive utilization to a few of these options that exist already inside an employer, is a good win-win-win for all,” Kumar stated in an interview. “It’s an amazing win for the opposite resolution, it’s an amazing win for the employer, it’s an amazing win for the worker.”
Some staff are already benefiting from Milu’s platform. Gribov advised the story of 1 affected person who had a $16,000 medical invoice for a tumor removing. Milu discovered that the worker was eligible for monetary assist and was capable of assist the affected person with the appliance. Due to that, the affected person didn’t need to pay something.
Gribov added that he isn’t conscious of different firms doing precisely what Milu is doing by connecting with digital well being data. Nonetheless, different firms that work with employers to decrease prices and direct sufferers to the precise care embrace Solera Well being, Quantum Well being, Accolade and Well being Pleasure.
In the end, Milu goals to drive financial savings and assist sufferers entry the care they want, Kumar declared.
“We speak lots about how in healthcare, there are such a lot of fissures,” he stated. “There are such a lot of items that simply break and the plumbing of healthcare is simply tremendous difficult with a number of cracks. And I believe the extra we are able to do to verify sufferers don’t fall by way of these cracks, … the extra we are able to actually assist sufferers and have an actual impression on individuals’s lives.”
Picture: claudenakagawa, Getty Photographs
