Upperline Health – which is the nation’s largest provider network dedicated to specialty value-based care – recently announced it has raised over $58 million in new capital. And Crestline Investors led the latest round with additional participation from previous investors including Silversmith Capital Partners and Adam Boehler. The funding round will be used to drive further growth in Upperline Plus, its Accountable Care Organization (ACO) REACH program.
Upperline Health was launched in 2017 after David Thorpe and Stephen Nash worked together at Aspire Health, serving end-of-life patients with serious illnesses. And there they identified an overwhelming pattern of the sickest patients suffering from lower extremity complications, largely from diabetes. What they saw at Aspire and in the data was that sicker patients tend to engage more frequently with specialists, oftentimes at the expense of seeing their primary care provider. So the patients most in need of comprehensive and coordinated care instead end up with the most fragmented. In order to care for these patients more effectively, Thorpe and Nash started Upperline Health with the goal of bringing a comprehensive care model to patients already engaged with their specialists.
Upperline Health’s focus on specialty care provides a more efficient path to good health for patients, providers, and payers. And patients are able to better manage chronic illness and transform their lifestyles via preventative care seamlessly integrated into their current habits; specialist physicians have fewer hurdles in their work and can focus on the whole patient; and economics improve for payers as frequent, quality care helps keep patients out of the hospital. The care team wraps around specialists — advanced practice providers, physicians, care navigators, pharmacists, dieticians, and social workers — treating patients with chronic illnesses, giving Upperline Health patients 24/7 access to specialty expertise.
The company’s specialty approach to value-based care is building momentum and delivering results:
— Serving 350,000 patients annually
— Enrolled 30,000 patients in Upperline Plus over the last eight months
— Established 122 Upperline Health clinics across 7 states (Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee)
— Reduced hospitalization spending by 30%
— Achieved 81/100 patient satisfaction score
KEY QUOTES:
“We’re serving the highest-risk patient population with a variety of chronic conditions, extremely high mortality rate, and a spend that is 3-5x the average patient. We know these patients oftentimes fall between the cracks, but they don’t have to if we can better identify how and where to engage them. It’s why we started Upperline Health, to create a more effective approach to engaging patients in need of an extra layer of support. Our specialists typically see patients 4-6x a year and have long-standing relationships with patients suffering from chronic illnesses. Our mission is to take that relationship and expand those frequent visits to treat the whole patient, not just a stand-alone complication. Patients don’t have to change their behavior to receive complementary health services, which can help mitigate complications that would traditionally land them in the ER.”
— David Thorpe, CEO of Upperline Health
“Despite 70% of healthcare providers being specialists, there has been little focus on value-based care arrangements with these physicians. We were drawn to Upperline Health because they offer a sustainable approach to treating patients with chronic illnesses. By meeting patients where they are, whether it’s in a doctor’s office, over the phone, or in the patient’s home, they bring more efficient, more effective healthcare to those who need it most.”
— Marc Strauss, Managing Director at Crestline Investors
