The pandemic has taxed the psychological well being of individuals of all ages, but it surely has been particularly attempting for kids and teenagers.
“Childhood and adolescent melancholy and anxiousness doubled through the first yr of the pandemic,” mentioned Naomi Allen, co-founder and CEO of Brightline, in an electronic mail supplied by a consultant.
The Palo Alto, California-based firm—which offers digital behavioral well being companies to kids, adolescents and households nationwide—is searching for to be a part of the answer. On Tuesday it introduced that it has raised $105 million in Sequence C funding to assist it attain extra kids and households struggling with psychological sickness. The spherical introduced the corporate’s complete haul up to now to over $200 million.
It’s the most recent instance of how an uptick in psychological well being issues through the pandemic appears to have spurred vital funding in psychological well being startups. The necessity for digital behavioral well being fueled development in psychological well being platforms, which vary from Body to Rose to TheraTalk.
“Brightline will use this funding to develop its companies to assist various populations corresponding to caregivers of younger kids with autism spectrum dysfunction and youth who establish as LGBTQ+ and/or BIPOC,” Allen mentioned.
The corporate additionally plans to develop its partnerships with well being plans and employers as demand for family-focused advantages skyrockets, she mentioned. Moreover, Brightline is trying to make use of this funding to develop affected person applications, assist culturally competent care supplier coaching and develop its care workforce.
“We’re at present hiring therapists, coaches and different care specialists nationwide,” Allen mentioned.
The corporate at present employs round 85 care suppliers, together with psychologists, psychiatrists, speech-language pathologists and behavioral coaches. It’s now seeking to triple that quantity by the top of the yr, Allen mentioned.
International funding agency KKR led the Sequence C spherical, and current buyers GV (previously Google Ventures), Optum Ventures, Oak HC/FT, Threshold, 7wireVentures, Youngsters’s Medical Heart Company (dad or mum company of Boston Youngsters’s Hospital), and Blue Cross Blue Defend of Massachusetts additionally participated. Johnny Kim, director at KKR, has additionally joined Brightline’s board of administrators, in line with the corporate.
The sheer variety of contributors and the quantity raised indicators Brightline definitely isn’t alone in recognizing a have to concentrate on complete baby and complete household care.
“The healthcare system wants to raised assist households throughout your entire care journey—from first partaking with the system to attaining higher well being outcomes,” Allen mentioned. “As the primary nationwide full-family behavioral well being answer constructed particularly to care for teenagers, teenagers and their caregivers, Brightline offers households with entry to no matter care they may want.”
To carry households these advantages, the corporate companions with well being plans and employers, together with Aetna, Blue Cross Blue Defend of Massachusetts, Blue Defend of California, Aggressive Well being, Municipalities, Schools, Faculties Insurance coverage Group (MCSIG), Sequoia, Stanford College and Xcel Vitality.
The corporate now serves 50 employers and covers greater than 24 million well being plan lives with plans to achieve over 50 million well being plan lives in 2022.
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