Aledade, a Bethesda, Md.-based company focused on physician-led accountable care organizations (ACOs), has announced that it has raised another $20 million in funding to speed up its efforts to grow its provider network and expand partnerships with commercial and Medicare Advantage health plans.
This round of funding was led by Biomatics Capital, with participation from new investors including GV (formerly Google Ventures) and the Maryland Venture Fund, and existing investors Venrock and ARCH Venture Partners, the organization announced today.
Aledade’s ACOs are keyed in on the shift to value-based reimbursement across both public and private payer healthcare markets. After doubling in size last year, the Aledade ACO network now includes more than 200 independent, physician-led practices across 15 states that together represent more than 240,000 covered lives and $2 billion in healthcare spending, officials attest.
In addition to its work with the Medicare Shared Saving Program (MSSP), Aledade has expanded its payment contracts with commercial payers (such as Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas and Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield) and public payers (such as the West Virginia Public Employees Insurance Agency).
Aledade’s recent growth was driven by its expansion beyond Medicare MSSP ACOs to commercial value-based contracts with private health plans and a state employee health plan. With this $20 million Series B1 round, Aledade has raised a total $55 million in funding. Now, Aledade will look to continue to grow and diversify its business by forging partnerships with Medicare Advantage health plans and Medicaid payers.
“Aledade is about providers taking the lead on delivering better care at lower cost, and this funding round is an emphatic statement that we are more than just Medicare Shared Savings Program ACOs. In the last six months alone, we have gone from zero to 100,000 commercially insured patients in our network,” said Farzad Mostashari, M.D., CEO and co-founder of Aledade, and former ONC chief. “With this new funding, we will push ahead to bring the Aledade model of care to all patient and payer populations across the health care system, including Medicare Advantage.”
Aledade provides primary care physicians with regulatory guidance; best practices from a national network of more than 1,000 primary care doctors; technology and data analytics that aim to provide insight into the full spectrum of care patients receive; and face-to-face practice transformation support.
Executives from the new round of investment companies praised the physician-led organization and its leader, Mostashari, in their respective statements. “There is a fundamental shift occurring in healthcare, from fee-for-service to payment based on keeping patients healthy,” said Andy Jones, managing director at the Maryland Venture Fund. “We invest in exceptional entrepreneurs and believe that Aledade, led by Dr. Mostashari, is well positioned to execute on this opportunity.” Krishna Yeshwant, general partner at GV, added, “The company’s physician-led model will become even more valuable as commercial payers continue to implement new payment models, and we’re impressed with Aledade’s continued growth under the leadership of Dr. Farzad Mostashari.”
