Solv Closes $6.25 Million Series A from Benchmark Capital

"How consumers travel, invest, shop and even how we buy homes has been improved dramatically by technology over the past ten years, but healthcare has been resistant," said Bill Gurley, Benchmark Capital. "With this shift, innovative healthcare providers are increasingly focused on both the quality of care and convenience for their patients. Solv's marketplace approach, combined with their proven leadership team, is poised to improve how millions of Americans get seen for everyday health issues, same day and on their terms."

It takes an average of 24 days for Americans to schedule a new doctor's appointment¹. This delay in care isn't just frustrating for consumers, but can also result in an unintended strain on our healthcare system. Because people often don't know where to go outside of a primary care physician, many avoid care or head to the emergency room (ER) for non-life threatening health issues like colds and sore throats, cuts and sprains, stomach aches, and rashes. In fact, of the 130 million visits to the ER last year, sixty-six percent, or nearly 86 million, were avoidable².

Long wait times for appointments and the alternative of delayed care or expensive trips to the ER have triggered a shift in how consumers interact with the traditional healthcare delivery system—a change driven largely by millennials entering the workforce or becoming new parents. According to recent research, half of millennials have no relationship with a primary care physician and fifty-nine percent would prefer to visit an urgent care or retail clinic versus a primary care physician³. Much like using a smartphone to book a restaurant reservation or hail a rideshare, seventy-one percent would also use an app to manage their healthcare⁴.

This trend towards convenient, affordable, and on-demand care is reflected in the urgent care industry, which has emerged as one the most accessible and fastest growing segments of healthcare. While Americans visited an urgent care clinic 150 million times last year,⁵ up until now, there have been no technology solutions dedicated to helping millions of consumers discover an urgent care clinic and book ahead so they can avoid the wait.

Solv's mobile-friendly product makes it easy for consumers to book same-day urgent care, saving them time and money. It provides transparency into the entire process from how long you'll wait to if your insurance is accepted, and even what out-of-pocket costs you can expect. For providers, Solv's scheduling software helps clinic owners improve the end-to-end patient experience, including managing reservations, streamlining operations, and reducing wait time.

"As an emergency room physician, I see firsthand how many people come to the ER who don't need to, primarily because they don't know where else to go after hours or on the weekends. Our group established CityDoc Urgent Care clinics because we wanted to deliver high-quality, affordable, and convenient care for our patients' everyday healthcare needs," said co-founder of CityDoc Urgent Care, Brenna Nance, M.D. "Solv's technology helps our practice with reservation tools that streamline our operations and reduce wait times. Its consumer product also provides the on-demand, mobile experience that patients want, while driving more business through our front door."

Since launching its private beta in late 2016 in Dallas Fort Worth, Texas, thousands of patients have already used the Solv technology platform. With just a few taps on their phone, patients can find urgent care providers based on location and symptoms, and choose an appointment time that best fits their needs. Over eighty percent of Solv users are in an exam room within two hours from booking, and a third of all bookings happen outside of business hours. By uploading a photo of an insurance card, Solv's technology can instantaneously read the card and confirm coverage. If paying out-of-pocket, Solv surfaces cash prices so there are no additional surprises once a patient arrives for a visit.

Solv CEO and co-founder Heather Fernandez explained: "We started Solv because we wanted to make it easy to see a doctor within hours—not days or weeks—for the unexpected health issues that can impact us everyday. When you have a sore throat before work or if your kid sprains an ankle at the Saturday soccer game, it should be easy to get a same-day doctor's appointment somewhere convenient and that takes your insurance. Solv is delivering this consumer-first healthcare experience by starting with two things that hundreds of millions of people are already using: a smartphone and urgent care."

Starting today, Solv will open its private beta to more patients and providers in Dallas Fort Worth, Texas via its website at www.solvhealth.com and will be expanding to additional cities throughout the rest of the year. Users can also access Solv from any mobile device.

About Solv:
Founded and based in San Francisco, Solv is a mobile-friendly service that lets you find and book a same-day doctor's appointment at an urgent care clinic and skip the wait. With a veteran team of product, engineering, and operations leaders from Trulia and other leading consumer technology companies, and backing from Benchmark Capital, Solv is building a technology platform to bring convenience and transparency to our healthcare system and to empower consumers to make better decisions about their everyday health. Visit www.solvhealth.com to learn more.

¹https://www.merritthawkins.com/2014-survey/patientwaittime.aspx

²http://averytelehealth.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Avoidable-Emergency-Department-Usage-Analysis-Truven-Health-Analytics.pdf  

³http://pnc.mediaroom.com/2015-03-23-Five-Ways-Tech-Savvy-Millennials-Alter-Health-Care-Landscape

⁴https://www.salesforce.com/form/industries/2015-state-connected-patient.jsp

⁵http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/urgent-care-market-reaches-15-billion-as-locations-patient-visits-rise-300435256.html

SOURCE Solv

Related Links

http://www.solvhealth.com