Grand Rounds, which connects patients with expert physicians, has raised $55 million in late-stage funding round, bringing the total sum raised to date to $106 million. A new, unnamed mutual fund investor led the round, with participation from existing investors Greylock Partners and Venrock.
The San Francisco company, according to the CEO Owen Tripp, has barely tapped into the $40 million funding round it took last year, but will use the new capital to expand its platform and hire more people to its care team.
Part of the reason Grand Rounds is growing is because it’s proving that it can improve outcomes and reduce cost and waste.Tripp said that part of the reason Grand Rounds is growing is because it’s proving that it can improve outcomes and reduce cost and waste. He cites research saying that when expert physicians examine first opinions by non-specialist physicians, the opinion or diagnosis (or both) is wrong in 67 percent of cases. “That is an information technology problem,” Tripp says.
Bryan Roberts, partner at Venrock, shares Tripp’s beliefs. “The U.S. spends over $40 billion annually on spinal surgeries alone – that is nearly a third of federal education spending,” said Roberts. “If these patients received a Grand Rounds consultation as part of their decision-making process, we could save $24 billion in avoidable procedures, not to mention the associated complications and diminished quality of life.”
The company offers three main products: Grand Rounds Opinions lets patients get a second opinion on a diagnosis or treatment plan from some of the top specialists around the country; Grand Rounds Office Visits pairs consumers with the top physicians in their area and sets up an appointment; and Grand Rounds STAT allows people hospitalized for a serious illness to connect their doctors with top medical specialists around the country to discuss diagnoses and treatment plans.
Last year, Grand Rounds signed a big deal with Castlight Health in which it offers its physician access services through Castlight’s healthcare product marketplaces which is offered to big employers.
[Via: VentureBeat]