Create Health Ventures, a VC firm exclusively focused on early-stage digital health startups with founders from the healthcare industry, announced the closing of its first fund of $21 million and its goal of investing in innovations that improve access to care for everyone, enhance the patient experience and facilitate better patient health outcomes. And the firm invests in business-to-business (B2B) solutions that payers and pharmaceutical companies can utilize to meet business goals ranging from enhanced patient engagement and a more effective care journey to recruitment and retention in clinical trials as the need for participants accelerates.
The firm is composed of two founder-managing partners with over 45 years of experience in healthcare operations and investing, Cartmell and Amit Aysola, who together have invested in or advised over 80 high-growth companies. Austin-based Cartmell has 25 years of experience in healthcare as a Chief Operating Officer, Chief Revenue Officer, board member, and VC investor, and an advisor to Morgan Stanley, UnitedHealthcare, the University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School, and the British Government. Chicago-based Aysola has over 20 years of experience in healthcare as a management consultant, operator, investment banker, and VC investor, and is an advisor to the Michigan Biomedical Venture Fund and the Institute for Artificial Intelligence in Medicine at Northwestern University. As a team, they bring their expertise, regulatory know-how, and operational knowledge to their portfolio companies, as well as deep industry relationships, including limited partners (LPs) with successful exits who mentor their firm’s founders and CEOs.
A major focus of Create Health Ventures is investing in payer-facing technologies as payers are subsidizing or paying for provider-facing technologies to execute on value-based models and improve member experiences successfully.
Create Health Ventures is also investing in technologies that strengthen pharmaceutical companies’ ability to recruit and retain patients in clinical trials, as the industry is ramping up later-stage clinical trials and manufacturing. And the number of drugs currently in phase three clinical trials (18%) has surpassed pre-Covid levels (15%). Currently, the pharmaceutical industry has a multitude of point solutions, but there is a lack of data and workflow connectivity.
Create Health Ventures has made five investments to date and utilizes a LP base of foundations, impact investors and strategic industry partners. Many LPs are health industry veterans who have founded and exited companies, creating a network that actively mentors and assists the firms’ portfolio companies. And the firm offers a unique value-added services platform to support its portfolio companies and leadership, provided at no cost, that addresses the challenges of building and scaling. This also includes strategic partnerships that support recruiting, access to executive performance coaches, business development support and connections to healthcare industry veterans, among other benefits.
KEY QUOTES:
“We’ve heard firsthand from payers, providers and pharmaceutical companies that their business goals are to elevate the patient experience, facilitate better health outcomes and improve access to care for all, especially those with health disparities. We know that founders from the healthcare industry intimately understand how to meet these challenges leveraging technology, and supporting them is the most powerful way that we can invest and, in turn, positively impact the healthcare industry.”
- Emma Cartmell, co-founder and managing partner of Create Health Ventures
“Health plan members have an insurance card in their wallet without an accompanying digital experience like they do in most other facets of their lives. Payers want to fix that by digitizing the member experience so that they can identify members in need and better help them navigate their healthcare. Yet, the biggest challenge in healthcare is still lack of data and workflow connectivity among stakeholders. By backing technologies that sell to a health plan, our firm is enabling more seamless data and workflow aggregation that will change the game for payers, providers and patients. Additionally, payers are able to more effectively scale these technology solutions across geographies, reaching a larger pool of stakeholders.”
“There is a massive need for innovation in the pharmaceutical field around clinical trials, as the number of late-stage trials are increasing at a fast clip. More robust and holistic technology solutions that enable the recruitment and retention of trial participants are what’s needed to keep up with this rising demand.”
- Amit Aysola
“As a practicing physician passionate about solving the massive problem of uncoordinated healthcare with technology, I recognized early on the challenges of being a startup founder, like navigating the investor landscape and the importance of selecting partners with the expertise to support these efforts. It has been invaluable to partner with a firm of experts who have helped me build out my team operationally, scale my company quickly and grow our customer base of health plans and fundraise our latest round.”
- Dr. Chip Grant, an interventional cardiologist and founder and CEO of Watershed Health
“Many investors pitch themselves as value-add partners. No one lives this commitment like the Create Health Ventures team. They are insightful,collaborative and active in helping us grow and improve our business. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner.”
- Shara Cohen, President and CEO of Carallel
“Create Health Ventures has brought their expertise to every step of our journey after fundraising including go-to-market strategy and operations. As we continue to scale our customer base and reach more underserved communities with high-quality care, our investor team is helping us to manage our growth and make valuable connections along the way.”
- Neil Batlivala, co-founder and CEO of Pair Team
“As a purpose-driven marketing agency, it’s important that we partner with organizations who share our values. Create Health Ventures is working toward solutions that promise to create a healthier world and a meaningful return for our stakeholders. Together, our efforts extend beyond business outcomes to align incentives in ways that positively impact people’s lives by connecting them with the care they need. This is the kind of collective win that we’re seeking as an agency.”
- Scott Ensign, Chief Strategy Officer of Butler/Till
