In December, Patina Health announced that it raised $57 million in Series A.
Two months later, the at-home primary care provider has announced its first partnership, with Independence Blue Cross, to serve Medicare Advantage (MA) beneficiaries in Pennsylvania.
Patina will gain access to over 100,000 plan members in Southeastern Pennsylvania overall, including those located in the Philadelphia area.
“The accessibility and the equality that comes with this model [is important],” Patina CEO Jack Stoddard told Home Health Care News. “Most of the time people get care in a clinic, and that clinic is built oftentimes close to where doctors live. That creates pockets of rural deserts, but also certain urban areas where clinics don’t exist, or access is more difficult. For Independence, we are available to any of their members, regardless of where they are across five counties.”
Patina deploys primary care teams that conduct both in-person and virtual visits with patients.
The company also has a focus on value-based care, which Stoddard believes incentivizes its teams to take a customary approach and create as many touch points as possible.
“We have overcome that traditional barrier by not being focused on fee for service,” Stoddard said. “So we have built this natively to be value-based, which means that we we have an incentive to to spend more time with people to help coordinate care on their behalf, and to help them get the right care, in the right setting, at the right time.”
The at-home primary care model has gained significant steam during the public health emergency (PHE). As people have stayed home more often, accessibility issues have been exacerbated.
Companies like VillageMD, Heal and PopHealthCare are other examples of companies that conduct primary care in the home. Each of them also works with other at-home care providers to coordinate the right care for the seniors they serve.
“The health system can be complicated and frustrating for MA members to navigate,” Heidi Syropoulos, medical director of government markets at Independence, said in a statement. “That’s especially true for those who are managing multiple health conditions or who have challenges in accessing office-based care.”
As other industries have adapted more to the on-demand economy – such as banks, restaurants, retail and others – health care has lagged, Stoddard argued.
That’s why he believes partners like Independence will find significant value in Patina, as will its beneficiaries.
“That on-demand piece is more convenient for people. It makes it more accessible for people, and it’s just a better experience,” Stoddard said.
Patina is already in talks with other payers to launch partnerships similar to the newly announced one with Independence. After the Series A, it has no plans to raise more capital in the near-term future. The company says it has a “good runway” ahead of it.
Having the first partnership play out will help Patina further test its model and also prove its value to other payers that may be on the fence, the company believes.
“Having a partner who believes in your vision and is behind it is very, very important to a company as it launches,” Stoddard said. “It allows us to test the model, improve the model and then be ready to scale the model.”
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