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First the news: Glen Tullman, currently the CEO Transcarent, has a new, roughly $100 million venture fund, called 62 Ventures. The plan, he told me, is to use the new fund to invest in startups that fall outside the strict digital health focus of his well-known fund 7wireVentures. Among his interests will be startups from India, which Tullman called his “home away from home as a country” and where he sees great opportunity. 62 Ventures will also invest U.S.-based companies and aims to write checks between $1 million and $10 million. The fund has already invested in BridgeHealthAI, a startup aimed at “simplifying health and social benefits navigation” for people experiencing health disparities; Khyaal, a “super app” for seniors in India; and Loop Health, a health insurance and integrated care company in India.
On new AI features for Transcarent
Tullman’s current company Transcarent aims to rewire how self-insured employers provide health care to their workers with a slick smartphone app-based experience. Tullman said the company has spent over $100 million on the technology that ties together all of the health care services it offers, including access to digital services, in-person care, prescription drug discounts, and pathways for more complex needs like surgery and cancer care. In the coming months, the company plans to introduce a generative AI feature that can answer questions related to people’s health benefits, care, or other health-related questions.
On Transcarent is raising more money
Tullman did not confirm reports that the company has raised over $100 million in additional funding. What he did tell me is that he wants to build Transcarent into an industry changing $50 billion company and that would require significant capital. He offered a cocktail-party analogy for his approach to fundraising, drawn from early in his career before he had the money to buy whatever he wanted.
“I was told long ago when they’re passing the appetizers, take one because you don’t know when the tray is coming around again,” he said. “I was, a poor young, hungry kid. I took them every time, whether I needed them or not.”
On the controversial diabetes tech report
Tullman is best known as the former CEO of Livongo, the chronic disease management company that merged with Teladoc in an $18.5 billion deal, resetting expectations for digital health company success.
Unsurprisingly, he dismissed the recent Peterson Health Technology Institute report that analyzed data from Livongo and other digital diabetes management programs and found that they weren’t worth the money, saying, “it was poorly done.”
Tullman said that the report lacked sufficient input and review from outside diabetes experts, and that it drew its conclusions based on a limited subset of studies. He said that chronic disease management tools should not be evaluated for return on investment over a 12-month period. He added that report did not properly value the ability of chronic disease management tools to expand access to care. And while it highlighted the experiences of satisfied users, it did not assess any value to positive user experiences.
How will end of internet subsidies impact health care?
This month, a federal program that helped people with low income pay for internet service will begin winding down, with potential impacts to health care programs it enabled. Created with over $14 billion in funding in 2021, the Affordable Connectivity Program has provided roughly 23 million households with subsidized internet service. According to a survey by the Federal Communications Commission, 72% of people receiving subsidized internet used it to book or attend health care appointments.
Recognizing broadband internet as a potential barrier to accessing health care services, many insurers have made efforts to get their members connected in hopes that it will save them money on costly care down the line. It’s unclear how many health care companies were leaning on subsidies for such services but a program announced in January by Elevance Health specifically called out ACP as a source of funding. An Elevance spokesperson did not respond to multiple requests for comment on what exactly would become of that program now.
There’s hope that congress will swoop in to fund the popular program through proposed legislation with hundreds of cosponsors on board.
Spotting rare dementia with smartphone games
New research suggests a battery of smartphone-based tests may help identify a rare form of dementia earlier. Frontotemporal lobar degeneration affects an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 people in the U.S. and often presents when people are younger than with better known neurodegenerative diseases. About 30% of cases are tied to known genetic causes, and there are no treatments for the disease, which has a range of cognitive and motor symptoms.
Digital tools offer an opportunity to identify people with the condition earlier and monitor its progression, potentially streamlining clinical trials and eventually getting people access to treatments when they exist. In the new paper, 360 participants, including controls and people at various stages of FTD, completed a series of cognitively challenging games meant to mimic executive functioning tests conducted in clinics.
The tasks were found to be consistent with in-clinic evaluations used to diagnose FTD and were able to reliably identify dementia. In a fascinating wrinkle, the tasks were found to identify potential signs of FTD in people who are genetic carriers but have no clinical symptoms yet.
The paper is part of a larger research effort called the ALLFTD Study, which is ongoing, and is also collecting voice samples and movement data through an app for future analysis
Medical Devices: FDA clears a sepsis algorithm and more
- The Food and Drug Administration approved a new device from Abbott meant to treat tricuspid heart valve disease.
- FDA also cleared digital stethoscope company Eko Health‘s algorithm that can help doctors detect hidden heart failure.
- Biolinq raised $58 million to further develop its wearable patch that measures blood glucose. The fundraise was led by Alpha Wave Ventures, with participation from several other investors.
Personnel File: Amy Abernethy’s new gig and moves
- Former Verily executive Amy Abernethy is just barely out the door of the Alphabet life science company, and she’s taken a post on the board of Insitro, a self-described “machine learning-powered drug discovery and development company.”
- Big Health, developer of apps that treat mental health conditions, announced that former AbleTo and Optum executive Yael Berman will take over as CEO. Arun Gupta had been running the company since 2022 and remain chairman of the board of directors.
What we’re reading
- As cyberattacks on healthcare persist, can the FDA’s new device regs hold up?, MedTech Dive
- As AI proliferates, biopharma companies seek to harness it in clinical trials, STAT
- A lack of behavioral health providers in Medicare and Medicaid impedes enrollees’ access to care, Department of Health and Human Services