Adding The Missing Piece to Telehealth: Labs

We’ve been investing in digital health since the start of our first fund. When we started actively looking into the space, the idea of moving most healthcare from medical offices to people’s living rooms seemed impossible. Of course, so much of what we do remotely today would have seemed unthinkable back then.

Since then, we’ve seen virtual care and telemedicine go from an impossible idea to the new normal in the blink of an eye. The pandemic helped accelerate the change that was always coming and now there’s no looking back.

But for telemedicine to really scale and deliver on its most ambitious promises, it can’t be siloed away from the rest of the healthcare system. 70% of all medical decisions rely on laboratory results. If the emerging class of telehealth-first providers can’t order lab tests, there’s a limit to what services they’re able to offer and how they can treat patients.

To succeed, telemedicine needs to integrate with labs and meet patients where they are (online or off) to expand into new conditions and modalities. The future of virtual care will have to look more like a hybrid model than a purely online experience wholly distinct from “traditional” healthcare.

One of our newest investments, GetLabs, just announced a $3 million seed round to bridge that divide. GetLabs is building a network of phlebotomists (providers who draw blood and collect physical samples) and is already operating in Phoenix, Philadelphia, and Dallas.

Instead of sending people to patient service centers, GetLabs sends a provider directly to a patient’s door. It’s the digital health promise — convenience, ease, superior user experience — delivered in a new (old) medium.

GetLabs can help connect digital care delivered remotely to physical touchpoints with patients, allowing virtual clinics/telemedicine-only providers to address more complex conditions with a wider range of treatments options. The company is starting with lab work, but this is only the beginning for integrated care.

This seed round will help propel the company into more markets and more treatment modalities. We’re excited to be along for the ride!

You can read more about the company in TechCrunch and check out their open roles to join the team.