Iris Telehealth, an Austin-based telepsychiatry company that links providers with health systems and clinics, raised $40 million in Series B funding.
Why it matters: Behavioral health is a hot spot for investment in digital health, and Iris is the latest company in the sector to raise significant capital.
Details: Concord Health Partners and Columbia Pacific Advisors led the round, which is Iris’s first public fundraiser since it was founded in 2013.
- The new funding brings Iris’s total funding to $43 million, following a $3 million Series A it raised in 2017, Iris CEO Andrew Flanagan tells Axios.
How does it work: Iris matches its board-certified psychiatrists with health systems and community health centers based on scheduling preferences, long-term goals, and practice philosophy.
- These providers work with patients to identify problems, develop treatment plans and prescribe medications.
- The company currently works with nearly 200 health systems and community health centers, and expects to see its 2 millionth patient within the next year, says Flanagan.
- Iris’s model is similar to that of InnovaTel, which offers its services to community health centers. (Health Quartet acquired InnovaTel last year).
- “We’re a group of technologists surrounding this super-focused medical group,” says Flanagan.
Context: Unlike Iris, many behavioral health companies court employers and organizations or offer their services directly to consumers.
- paracleteFor example, it works with organizations that offer services for minor or acute problems such as stress, anxiety or loss of a loved one.
- health on the bright sideon the other hand, it works with organizations and individuals to treat more severe or chronic conditions, such as major depression.
Whats Next: With the funds, Iris plans to grow its clinical operations team, scale its go-to-market strategy, further develop its technology and increase the length of its contracts, which currently average 4 years, according to Flanagan.
- “The biggest challenge is not letting the turmoil of the market change who we are,” adds Flanagan.
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