Brittany Barreto, Ph.D.

In this week’s The Yuan, I share my thoughts on advances in #QSM (Quantified Self Movement) and how newer technologies (like #wearables and #LLMs) can unlock the power held in #biomarkers to help us live healthier for longer. Medicine 3.0 is here! #mitoplus #mito #humanedge #docm #longevity #healthspan #healthcare #everdayhealth

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Investing in companies that fill needs for health systems is a growth opportunity for both delivery organizations and start ups. Some systems are jumping in on their own, while others are partnering with like minded systems or with established VC firms. While this is a relatively new trend for systems, health plans have been making similar bets for many years. The benefits of becoming a health system portfolio company can be significant. Data, access to beta populations and real world coaching can be extremely beneficial. Start ups get mentoring and systems have to ability to leverage outside resources to solve relevant business problems. I predict a booming business!

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I’m thrilled to share that FeelBetter is starting a new prospective research study with Brigham and Women's Hospital, building on the success of our retrospective research study. "Many polypharmacy problems aren’t detected until patients end up in the ER and, in seniors with several chronic diseases and conditions, the simultaneous use of multiple medications ultimately contributes to 10-30% of hospitalizations,” said Lisa Rotenstein, MD MBA MSc, the principal investigator of the study. “Our previous study showed that its platform can be used to identify which patients are at the highest risk of polypharmacy-related adverse events. Based on retrospective data, we’re excited to prospectively examine how the platform can potentially be used to improve patient outcomes, healthcare utilization, and cost efficiencies.” #Polypharmacy #medicationmanagement #AI #ACO #VBC #PrecisionHealth #PopulationHealth

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Here's another fundraising roundup spotted in the healthcare wilds 👀 🍃 ✅ Sword Health raised $130M (new valuation: $3B). ✅ Better Health raised $14M to deploy expanded payer partnerships. ✅ Alzheon, Inc. | Preserving Future Memories raised $100M Series E to advance development & commercialization of its Alzheimer’s treatment. ✅ CinRx Pharma raised $73M to continue its ‘Hub and Spoke’ model of startup formation. ✅ Eko Health raised $41M to scale AI-driven heart and lung disease detection. ✅ Anterior (formerly Co:Helm) secured a $20M Series A to unlock admin efficiencies for healthcare payers. ✅ SamaCare raised a $17M Series B to scale specialty drug prior authorization platform. ✅ Plenful secured a $17M Series A to streamline pharmacy operations with AI-powered workflow automation. ✅ Grayce raised a $10.4M Series A led by Maveron amid a caregiving crisis. ✅ Stitch Employment Services Inc PEO raised $8.75M in seed to support independent medical practices. ✅ Posterity Health secured $6M to fund expansion and technology acceleration. ✅ Sware raised $6M to accelerate life sciences innovation by automating FDA-mandated software validation. ✅ Keragon raised $3M, as announced in @Conno Christou’s LinkedIn post. As always, if I missed you, let me know! Each week I'm spotlighting an innovative healthcare startup. I just ask for a bit more transparency. All submissions are confidential; submit yours here 👇 https://lnkd.in/gF4DrAvJ Looking for more fundraising roundups, alongside healthcare industry news and analysis? Subscribe to Hospitalogy, my 2x/week newsletter. Join 33K+ other investors, executives, and healthcare professionals: https://lnkd.in/g-nfRqW6

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Some VC investors believe that brick and mortar - referring to a physical presence of some kind - should be avoided at all costs. Yet, the track record of clinic and hybrid care businesses in health care indicates otherwise. ==> One Medical (sold for $3.9 billion to Amazon), Oak Street (bought by CVS for $10.6 billion), Lifestance (IPO at $7.5 billion market cap), and PE-backed Premise Health (acquired by OMERS Private Equity for $1.1 billion) If a clinic is indicated as the optimal way to deliver care for that patient population, there are creative ways to build and operate them. Full article below with advice and strategies on how to build and operate hybrid clinics from my teammate Anarghya Vardhana from Maveron, Amir Dan Rubin from OneMedical Group, Steven Eidelman from Modern Animal and more!

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#ICYMI Checkout this must read from Orrick Tech Life Sciences Report with PitchBook. It was such a great opportunity to be part of this provocative roundtable to discuss the latests trends and novel approaches for neurodegenerative diseases.  Cheers to my fellow #trailblazers Katrine Bosley, Brian Magierski, and Dean Ornish, M.D. for showcasing all the different opportunities we have to innovate and modernize care in complex brain diseases. One size does not fit all so we need evidence-based solutions for those living with a diagnosis and their loved ones. As someone leading a #healthtech focused in #AI-powered detection of unrecognized forms of #dementia, I am a big advocate of how technological advancements, like what we are doing at DigiCARE Realized can help #healthsystems provide proactive cognitive care network wide, including rural and urban settings. There is so much opportunity to innovate the diagnostic pathway so we can eliminate delay to treatments, like #kisunla + #leqembi, and care. Thank you again to the team at Orrick, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP and big shot out to Thora Johnson and Neel Lilani for facilitating such a great discussion. Link to full report: https://lnkd.in/ex7ud-rG DaCapo Brainscience, 21 Impact Labs, Ornish Lifestyle Medicine, Shawn Atkinson, Nick Mider, Ian Schreier, Tony Chan, Stephen Thau, Olivia O'Mahony  #venture, #Investments, in #lifescience and #healthtech.  

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A lot of healthcare startups are built on ideas that seem so obvious. So sensible. Like one of those feel-good concepts that win local pitch competitions. But neat ideas don’t necessarily make good businesses.   I met a startup that collects and re-dispenses unused medications. I’ve seen half a dozen variations on this idea of salvaging drugs. On the surface it makes sense. Many people have cupboards full of perfectly good meds. Meanwhile, others are going without the ones they need. So why not redistribute them?   First of all, that sounds like a logistical nightmare, for a multitude of reasons I won’t get into here.   Second, there are many entrenched interests that would want it to fail. If it becomes a credible threat, they will quash it. More likely though, it’s not even a rounding error - a nuisance they can largely ignore.   But in this case, the biggest issue concerned misalignments.   1.     Misaligned revenue model. The service is offered as a flat monthly subscription. Whether the client saves $1,000 or $100,000, they pay the same price. That’d be fine except it detaches the revenues from the entire value proposition, i.e., for each prescription, there’s a spread between dispensing a new drug versus one that’s been reclaimed. You can calculate that difference. But the startup cannot capture that value as revenue. So some clients would get a great deal, while others may feel like they’re overpaying. That makes it incredibly difficult to grow the business. 2.     Misaligned go-to-market strategy. The startup wants to sell to self-insured employers to save on drug costs. But they don’t have the sales force to approach them directly. So they try to sell through health plans. Seems more scalable. The problem is: Health plans don’t really care what the employers pay. They have little incentive to cut costs for administrative services only clients.   It’s all in the execution. Your revenue model should align with the value you deliver. Your go-to-market strategy should align with who receives that value. Otherwise, your neat idea may remain a neat idea. #startups #healthtech #vc #healthcareinnovation #pharmacy

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Interesting to see that digital health funding is relatively stable. Only a couple of exits. I think we'll see more deals like DarioHealth's acquisition of Twill, since from a sales perspective, the narrower the solution, the more difficult it is to acquire customers. This difficulty has nothing to do with the quality of offerings, but with the data management and administrative complexity on the customer side.

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It was fantastic to join the Milken Institute’s recent Future of Health Summit to discuss one of the biggest issues in healthcare today: pricing. We had a dynamic conversation about the rising costs burdening patients, systemic inefficiencies, and how deeply broken our approach to healthcare is. The good news is, we have ample opportunities to fix it. Here are a couple of strategies I believe can make a real impact: ➡️ Simplification: The complexity of our healthcare system adds unnecessary administrative costs and creates barriers for patients. By standardizing metrics, coverage policies, and payment systems across insurers, we could save billions annually and significantly improve access. ➡️ Shifting Accountability: Patients facing serious illnesses shouldn’t bear the brunt of deductibles and co-pays that add stress without reducing unnecessary care. Financial accountability should shift to providers, who are better positioned to make cost-effective decisions. If we’re truly committed to lowering healthcare costs and improving the average American’s experience in our system, we have to be willing to shake things up. Thanks to my fellow panelists and everyone at the #MIHealthSummit for driving these critical conversations forward! Check out our full panel, linked in the comments below.

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🚀 Innovate for Impact, Not Hype Too many healthtech startups are dazzled by the latest technology trends. But real success comes from driving value-based outcomes. Here’s your roadmap: 🔍 Enhance Patient Outcomes 💰 Cut Down Healthcare Costs ⚙️ Boost Operational Efficiency Funding and contracts don’t come from flashy features—they come from proven results. Focus on what truly matters to your end users and stakeholders. 💡 Make value the core of your innovation strategy. #Healthtech #ValueBasedOutcomes #HealthcareInnovation #Efficiency #Innovation #Health

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Latest #PitchBook data for #HealthIT investment shows a preference for later stage investment across healthIT that pre-dates the VC downturn and current interest rate environment. Even though healthIT has been more resilient to current headwinds compared to health care services and PPM plays, perhaps it speaks to a need to scale solutions and points of saturation for new entrants. "...In the lower middle market, we are beginning to see more examples of a phenomenon we have anticipated for a while: PE firms and PE-backed companies acquiring VC-backed startups. Lower-middle-market PE firms perennially complain that VC- backed companies expect too-high multiples, and these firms would generally prefer to invest on a multiple of EBITDA rather than a multiple of revenue..." Speaks to a convergence that would allow PE-VC M&A on both ends of the startup spectrum. #HealthcareVC #healthcarePE

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Form Health, the self-proclaimed leading provider of science-based obesity care in the United States, raises $38 million Series B led by Sound Ventures. The company provides a ‘…telehealth care model, which includes a dedicated clinical Care Team consisting of a board-certified doctor and a Registered Dietitian…’ to develop ‘…an individualized weight loss plan for each patient that addresses lifestyle changes and includes a prescription for FDA-approved weight loss medication, if appropriate.’ Founder and CEO Evan Richardson states the ‘…approach is fundamentally different from the many players in the category who are focused on handing out GLP-1s or potentially dangerous compounded medicine without the clinical care required for safe, long-term patient outcomes.’ https://lnkd.in/ejbmJVr2

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As of today, we are caught in a deep complex web of chronic diseases & health disasters. I am making an argument today that in spite of having exponential technologies at our disposal, hundreds of thousands of translational research, team of healthcare practitioners  & more, we are planning for an health epidemic Our body is a marvellous ecosystem of biochemical activities.  At its core lies intelligent interactions, coordination & support systems in place. Our body is a container to a trillion microorganisms. The symbiotic relationship between the human host, these 100 trillion microbes & our mitochondria keeps us in homeostasis. Our body has a huge tolerance power & is communicating with us every millisecond. Whenever we are fueling our body with garbage, it does its best to minimise the inflammatory damage & send you a message” please do not feed this crap”.  But we are stubborn folks- we do not listen to these subtle messages. Sometimes, we are not equipped to decode these messages.But everything has an end point, so is the tolerance limit of our body. With the current set of newly created wellness FMCG sector, we do not realise we are constantly bombarding our body, our microbes with crappy inflammatory molecules. While there is nothing called a universal health diet, there is always a universal unhealthy diet. -With new age self proclaimed packaged healthy snacks containing artificial sweeteners, emulsifiers, dates, seed oil , we are interfering with intracellular signalling, rendering our cell dysfunction, thereby shutting down nitric oxide production & leading wave of metabolic disorders. -No science no research OTC Probiotics & synthetically laden supplements such as NAD, NMN etc is disrupting ecosystem of microbiome inside our body, keeping our immune system on overactive mode, triggering wave of cytokine storm & leading to disease onset -Relying on too much on healthcare delivery data which does not deep dive into changes in your chemistry before or during the disease onset & cannot identify asymptomatic molecular signals -Too much focus on primitive nutrition that does not go beyond macronutrients & does not accept the fact that food ontology is a container for 30,000 plus molecules. To truly understand nutrition, we need to understand the interaction between your microbiome & food substrates in the food you eat. You are not what you eat, but what your microbiome metabolises. If you really want to reclaim control of your health, understand your biology deep down at molecular level & do not fall for so called healthy snacks https://lnkd.in/gFWCdA_q For all VC(s)- healthcare is not a market opportunity, it is an impact opportunity! Understanding human biology else you are doing nothing but financing a health disaster. #microbiome #gutmicrobiome #oralhealth #chronicdiseases #type2diabetes #obesity #precisionnutrition Sakshi Bali Shashi Shekhar M. Dr Kamal Karnatak Tarun Kumar Rupinder Singh

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Transformation in healthcare is a crucial topic. What does it truly mean? Imagine a focus on alleviating the workload burden through technology, automating processes, eliminating human error, and understanding the pain points in care delivery. It's about creating process (not point) solutions that reduce waste and expense and create discipline, not just addressing isolated issues. We can achieve this by refining one workflow at a time. Consistently innovating with team input and integrating new knowledge fosters a culture of creativity and efficiency. Consider how well innovators grasp the fundamental issues from multiple angles. Some of the keys to success include truly understanding the healthcare industry, obsessing over the problem they are solving, having a clear and impactful value proposition, orchestrating workflows with change management and involving diverse experts. Transformation is challenging, no matter how we define it. By addressing these questions and focusing on change management, we can navigate the complexities of healthcare and drive meaningful change. Please share your innovation stories that are gaining traction and solving problems with discipline.

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🚀 ☕ Pausefika news: smart stethoscope in healthcare! 🩺 Having worked closely with innovators and supported seed funding for smart stethoscope aimed at addressing Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, I'm thrilled to see Lapsi Health making waves with their breakthrough in remote patient monitoring! 🌍🩺 Lapsi Health, an Amsterdam-based startup, has just launched Keikku, a smart digital stethoscope, in the US after receiving FDA clearance. This wireless device uses advanced AI (which one Lapsi Health? Is it in-house AI or are you using any API from Anthropic or OpenAI?) and sensing technology to analyze body sounds like breathing and transform them into actionable data. 📊👂 (see: https://lnkd.in/dd-7CnXD ) What’s even more impressive? Keikku not only enhances diagnostics for conditions like respiratory, cardiac, and gastrointestinal issues but also supports remote patient monitoring – a game-changer for healthcare providers and patients alike. In the future, Lapsi Health plans to empower patients with the ability to monitor their health from home. 🏠💡 But that’s just the start. Lapsi Health is also developing Ilo, a wearable for fetal health, and Air, a device for lung tracking – promising even more groundbreaking solutions. Big shoutout to Jhonatan Bringas Dimitriades, MD, Diana Van Stijn, Rodrigo Alvez, and Séamus Holohan for leading the charge! 🚀 To date, the company has raised $5.8M, and I can’t wait to see how they’ll continue to revolutionize healthcare. 🙌 Join healthcare innovators on Pausefika ! #Innovation #HealthcareTech #MedTech #RemotePatientMonitoring #Startups #Pausefika #Smartstethoscope #COPD #KOL

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Funding is NOT the ultimate metric of DeSci. Sure, it makes it possible to achieve the outcomes of science, but more money doesn't make it better science. Better science makes it better science. If we are just measuring by dollar amounts of deals made with pharmaceutical companies or products sold, we are not actually thinking about how this will help create a healthier world. Don't get me wrong, solving the translational funding crisis in many scientific fields is a big big deal happening in DeSci, but shouldn't be the ultimate metric. There is one metric that is a lot more important. The ultimate value DeSci has on the world based on product outcomes. Whether that is regarding treatment efficacy, side effects, time to cures, accessibility, efficacy vs TradSci solutions, or even climate effects such as measurements of a more sustainable earth pioneered by ValleyDAO. If we reach a $5 billion market cap or $50 million funded and we have still achieved no meaningful product-based impact, we have failed as an industry.

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🎙️ NEW PODCAST EPISODE 🎙️ What’s next for healthcare innovation? In this week’s Health & Veritas, Vin Gupta, MD MPA joins me and Howard Forman to discuss: ✅ Scaling healthcare impact through innovation ✅ Medicare’s landmark proposal to cover anti-obesity medications like Wegovy & Ozempic ✅ Transforming pharmacy services with @Amazon to improve access and reduce costs We also reflect on the transformative potential of anti-obesity drugs, which go beyond weight loss to reduce heart disease, high blood pressure, and more. For millions of Americans, expanded Medicare access could be life-changing. 💡 “Obesity isn’t about willpower or appearance—it’s a chronic disease. These tools are game changers, but affordability and equity remain critical.” – @hmkyale And Howard Forman wraps up with an inspiring reflection on what we should all be thankful for in healthcare innovation, from AI diagnostics to cures for diseases like sickle cell. 🎧 Tune in now: https://buff.ly/416AYW0 Yale School of Medicine Yale School of Management Yale School of Public Health Amazon #HealthAndVeritas #HealthcareInnovation #PublicHealth #Obesity #Gratitude 

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Function wants to reimagine healthcare. The preventative diagnostics platform closed a Series A investment led by a16z Bio + Health, bringing its total funding to $53M. Co-founded by functional medicine expert Mark Hyman, MD, the company leverages robust lab testing to improve longevity and healthspan. Taking a proactive approach, twice-annual 100-biomarker panels are reviewed by AI and human clinicians to spot and treat disease. Members can also opt for additional tests as needed. Operating in beta since April, Function Health counts 50K paying customers, a 200K person waitlist, and recently partnered with Equinox. Losing faith in traditional healthcare, more people are seeking preventative scans, alternative medicine, and longevity protocols. Democratizing diagnostics, Function wants to prioritize health over healthcare. 

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