Issue 042

Welcome back to E&O Mondays, the free newsletter from Exits & Outcomes that features health tech puzzles and trivia, new and under-the-radar funding news, paid content teasers and other digital health odds and ends.

 E&O Mondays.

In this issue:

• Just five under-the-radar or not-yet-reported health tech funding deals — slow week!
• And… the long-awaited answer to last week’s Health Tech Rebus Puzzle.
• But wait: If this was forwarded your way, why not sign up as a paying subscriber to E&O by clicking right here…

5 secret (or under-reported) health tech funding deals from recent weeks

Instead of rehashing the dozens of funding deals you’ve already read elsewhere, I focused this week on a few deals that you likely have not yet read about. (These are all first in E&O — as far as I can Google.)

* Keep in mind: Most of the amounts listed below are currently unannounced equity sales, so the full amount the company raises and eventually announces may be higher than the numbers below.

$17.8 million – SnapNurse – Back in March SnapNurse announced in a press release that it had grown 75,000 percent in the prior 12 months, which — more than anything — makes me wonder how much they were making in March 2020. “SnapNurse’s underlying technology, Instastaff, enables sourcing, applicant tracking, workforce management, timecard approvals, booking and credentialing. Our proprietary payment system allows for daily payments to workers at the end of every shift. Our user-friendly, on-demand hiring platform powers massive scale and quality for both facilities and healthcare professionals.” Site

$9.6 million – Carrot – There are a few digital health companies with the name Carrot, but this one is the Carrot that offers a smoking cessation program that goes by the name Pivot. “Pivot is a tech-enabled platform that seeks to fundamentally change both the scale and tools of smoking cessation. In place of antiquated telephonic quit programs, Pivot uses an FDA-cleared carbon monoxide breath sensor, engaging smartphone app, in-app coaching, pharmacotherapy, and community to deliver proven quit methods in a novel, consumer-grade package.” Site

$8.3 million – Vivante Health – Vivante was founded by one of the original founders of Livongo. The company just filed two SEC filings this past week related to past funding rounds. This one for $8.3 million doesn’t seem to correspond to any funding that the company had previously announced so it caught me eye. “Vivante Health is… reinventing the way chronic conditions are managed, gut first. Our all-in-one gut health program, GIThrive, empowers people… to improve digestive health while lowering their cost of care.” Site

$750,000 in debt – Keona Health – “Keona’s Health Desk provides one seamless interface for handling any patient question including triaging patients with rules-based algorithms and AI-driven workflow.” Site

$395,000 in options – Ultrasound AI – “Ultrasound AI (UAI) provides providers and patients with timely, accurate information to make better-informed decisions and improve the wellbeing of babies and mothers. We combine the power of ultrasound with artificial intelligence to forecast the number of days early a baby will be born. Results are rendered instantly and delivered into existing clinical workflows used by obstetricians and maternal fetal medicine specialists.” Site

Health Tech Rebus Answer

Alright… time for the long-awaited answer to last week’s Health Tech Rebus Puzzle. But first: Here’s a small sample of the many very smart E&O readers who got this one right:

• Amanda DiTrolio, Intelligence Analyst, CB Insights
• Stacey Anger, Regional Sales Director, One Drop
• Anish Aitharaju, Director of Biz Dev, Happify Health

And the answer: Randomized Controlled Trials. One reader wrote in and suggested the tweaked wording of “randomized control trial”. Which is your preference?

ICYMI — Last week’s puzzle is below. Here’s how to play: This kind of puzzle is called a Rebus. Write down or think of the word for what’s pictured in each box as a starting point. Then swap letters (if you see =), or remove letters (when you see -), or add letters (when you see +) at the beginning, middle, or end of the words as noted. Then sound it out.

Hint: Some payers evaluating digital health programs can’t seem to get enough of these.