How Our Series C Will Resolve Inequities in Healthcare
By Sean Lane, CEO and Founder, CrossChx
There are some major hurdles to overcome in healthcare. We all know that.
Many industry experts talk about it and there are lots of different versions and lists of things that need to be fixed. When we first started CrossChx, we were shocked that there was no identity layer in healthcare. As technologists, it was hard to imagine patients didn’t have the power to digitally share information about themselves to whatever provider they “hired” to take care of them.
So we made it our mission to fix that. We built and deployed a series of products that produce a viable identity layer. This identity layer will allow us to empower patients to share information about themselves with the world of healthcare. It will start with basic profile information and progress into a very rich and relevant picture of their health. It will be digitally delivered in seconds to any provider. It will lead to healthier people. I’m confident in that.
So that’s it. We found the problem! Right? No identity layer. That has to be it. Right? Well, I wish it was. But in reality the lack of an identity layer is one symptom of a bigger problem. The bigger problem is that there are systematic inequities in healthcare. For example, in hospitals, inequity in technology; for patients, inequity in access to information. When most sophisticated people (like investors for example) think about healthcare, a parade of logos appear in their mind. Mayo, Stanford, HCA, Cleveland Clinic, UCSF, Dignity, Trinity, Epic, McKesson, etc. After all, these are the titans of healthcare. But the reality is, while these organizations are absolutely wonderful, they ain’t where healthcare actually happens.
To accurately depict where healthcare actually happens, you’d need to rattle off the names of 3,000 or so small to medium regional hospitals, hundreds of thousands of physician practices, urgent cares, ambulatory surgery centers and the like. That’s where healthcare happens. The titans mentioned above have the most capital. They’re the richest and can afford the best technology. They can pay the exorbitant prices for the “best” healthcare software and equipment. That’s a pretty big inequity.
The places where healthcare happens most often have less access to the greatest technologies. How are we supposed to ever become healthier as a society when such an inequity exists? Does innovation trickle down? Of course, maybe a little … with time. But let’s face it, there aren’t enough amazing technologists building the world’s best new software for the underserved “little guys” of healthcare.
At CrossChx, we want to change that. We’ve laser-focused our efforts on the underserved markets of healthcare — where healthcare actually happens — and given them the most sophisticated products in the industry built by some of the best engineers in the country.
We are committed to balancing the inequity of technology by providing affordable solutions to modernize healthcare where it happens the most. We’re starting with the patient sign-in experience by rethinking the process, building a solution that is global and based on a true, connected “internet” of healthcare, as opposed to a bunch of siloed “intranets.” As our company grows we will move into areas deeper in the clinical experience beyond the entry point and continue to provide asymmetrically innovative solutions where they’re needed the most. It’s a tough mission, and believe it or not, it all starts with identity. We’ve got lots of work to do but we’re moving quickly and expanding across the country at speeds never seen before in this industry.
In addition to technology, another inequity within healthcare involves information. Patient’s are on the short end of the stick when it comes to healthcare information. They don’t have the ability to digitally log in, to access all their health information for their lifetime, to communicate, to understand costs, or to follow-up. Healthcare is an information black hole for patients. They endlessly fill out forms and file EOBs and confusing bills into hanging folders with no light at the end of the tunnel. It’s super frustrating. Literally, ask any person. Why can’t healthcare information be as transparent and accessible as banking information? Even taxes are clearer and easier to navigate than healthcare. At least there are some technology companies that have tried to make it easier.
If we are going to focus on balancing the inequities that exist within healthcare, we can’t stop at access to technology solutions across providers. We must also address the information inequities between patients, payers, and providers. To resolve these inequities, the identity layer again becomes super critical. We’ve created a unique ID for 50 million patients so far. That unique ID will serve as the center point for each patient’s healthcare information. We’re going to use that unique ID to make it easy for patients to share their data with healthcare and healthcare to share data with them. Our sign-in solution will soon evolve into the vehicle for information equity. It will become the place where patients can go to interact with healthcare that cuts through the shroud of confusion that exists today.
Ultimately though, it’s not really about healthcare. It’s about health. We just want to use technology to balance inequities and create an opportunity for people to live healthier lives. While technology won’t solve all the problems by itself, it will be the greatest force multiplier of anything in our generation to increase the life expectancy of the world. The technology exists. The task at hand is more about organizing complex systems and providing value-added products that are so good they’re pulled off the shelves at the right time, by the right people, in the right way. At CrossChx, we think the place to start is with a universal sign-in for patients. But there’s lot’s of exciting work that needs to be done on top of the identity layer.
We’re very excited about our recent round of financing. The $15 Million raised from SVB Capital, Drive Capital, Khosla Ventures, Moonshots Capital, and NCT Ventures will allow us to make significant progress towards fulfilling our mission to balance the inequities in technology and information in healthcare. We’re thankful for our investors belief and conviction in our mission. We think we’re best suited to pull it off thanks to a great team of over 120 folks dedicated to making it a reality. Over the next 12–18 months, we’ll be growing that team as well as our product footprint from one thousand to thousands of locations. We’ll create another 50 million unique ID’s, approaching a full third of the U.S. population. We’ll keep building and delivering amazing technology solutions to our focused market. And we’ll create and launch a mobile experience that will give patients more control over healthcare information.
Stay tuned. The best is yet to come.
