Zest Health, which is the first value-based virtual care company focused on treating patients with inflammatory skin diseases, announced $13 million in seed funding. And Zest Health’s platform provides personalized dermatology care that minimizes unnecessary pharmaceutical utilization while producing sustainable clinical outcomes.
Tens of millions of Americans have eczema and psoriasis, and they face average wait times of over a month and often have rushed visits. So, dermatologists are turning to cash-pay models that prioritize aesthetics. Prescribers use systemic medications to achieve clear skin and minimize and expedite office visits quickly.
Zest offers patients more personalized and responsive care. And Zest’s virtual and high-touch approach is supported by patient data to identify optimal prescription regimens, over-the-counter medications, lifestyle changes, and preventative interventions for more convenient and durable relief.
Zest’s approach reduces pharmacy spend by thousands of dollars per enrollee annually without sacrificing outcomes:
– Over 80% of patients see disease improvement as measured by Body Surface Area (BSA) and the Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI)
– Over 90% of patients prefer Zest to their prior dermatology experiences
Roivant Health had incubated and made this investment in Zest, bringing their historic expertise in inflammatory disease innovation and transformative health technologies. And the funds will be used to scale Zest’s existing partnerships with health plans and employers seeking to address this growing cost pool.
KEY QUOTES:
“As a psoriasis patient myself, I know that the status quo fails to deliver ongoing support and lasting relief. At Zest, we have flipped traditional dermatology care on its head by providing radical access and personalized care so flaring patients get expert help during and in between flares, without overreliance on biologics.”
- Zest Health CEO Olivia Deitcher
“Many problems in healthcare involve challenging tradeoffs between quality and cost. This is an exception where higher quality simultaneously reduces unnecessary expense. We are excited at Roivant to support Zest as they use technology to bring dermatology into the 21st century.”
- Alex Gasner, EVP of Roivant Health
