How are innovators driving sustainable ventures to transform Medicaid and improve care for underserved populations? During May’s Digital Healthcare Innovation Summit, Zeena Johar, entrepreneur in residence of Frist Cressey Ventures; Chris Johnson, founder and CEO of Bluebird Kids Health; Aditi Mallick, former CMO of Medicaid and director of Minority Health at CMS; and Jenny Ismert, CEO of Community Plan of Kansas at UnitedHealthcare Community & State gathered to discuss scalable solutions, funding strategies, and the role of technology in addressing complex challenges within Medicaid. Moderated by .406 Ventures’ Payal Agrawal Divakaran, the panel provided insights into creating lasting impact while navigating the evolving digital health and policy landscape. 

Ty Wang, co-founder and CEO of Angle Health, is working to ensure that anyone can access healthcare in a convenient and efficient way. Tune into this episode of Breaking Health, where host Steve Krupa speaks with Wang about shifting from engineering and government to healthcare and creating a platform that delivers comprehensive healthcare benefits while removing administrative barriers. Wang discusses the value proposition Angle Health is putting forth and what member experience is like on the platform, as well as shares advice for entrepreneurs that are at the early stages of starting their own company. 

 
Conversations between VCs and entrepreneurs typically occur in boardrooms or coffee shops. In the Breaking Health Podcast, you get a seat at the table. Healthcare Chief Executive Officer Stephen Krupa, HealthEdge Software, Inc., brings his more than 20 years’ investor experience insight to revealing conversations with the most disruptive CEOs in healthcare. Listen to understand how these leaders are building the companies—and fostering the cultures—that will change everything.  

Links from this episode:  
HealthEdge 
Angle Health 

In this episode of Breaking Health, host Steve Krupa speaks with Matt Bettonville, investor at Yosemite, about the state of oncology research and his hunt for investments in discovery and treatment tools. Bettonville delves into the key to cancer treatment, where deals are flowing towards in the market, and how the AI revolution is helping with drug discovery and cancer treatment breakthroughs. He also discusses the complications (and frustrations) of making treatments affordable, finding new targets in primary cancers most frequently seen in the population, and the importance of early detection. 

Links from this episode:  

HealthEdge

Yosemite 

In this episode of Breaking Health, guest host Payal Agrawal Divakaran, partner at .406 Ventures, speaks with Jeremy Friese, CEO of Humata Health, about prior authorization and how Humata is helping from “both sides of the fax machine.” Friese also discusses his thoughts on the future of AI adoption, how the regulatory landscape looks, and more. He also shares what the transition between physician to entrepreneur was like, what it’s like to found and grow companies, and how to select the right VC partners. 

Links from this episode:  
HealthEdge 
.406 Ventures
Humata Health 

In this year’s first episode of Breaking Health and to celebrate Heart Health Month, guest host Payal Agrawal Divakaran, partner at .406 Ventures, speaks with Jeffrey Wessler, MD, MPhil, CEO of Heartbeat Health, about virtual cardiovascular healthcare, how Heartbeat makes it possible for physicians and patients to give and receive treatment through telemedicine, and the advances in technology the company is making. Dr. Wessler also shares his thoughts on selecting VC partners, the dynamic for physician entrepreneurs as it relates to fundraising, and the significance of Heart Health Month.  

In this episode of Breaking Health, guest host Payal Agrawal Divakaran, partner at .406 Ventures, and Kate Condliffe, CEO and co-founder of Diana Health, discuss providing accessible maternity care and the future of women’s health. Condliffe shares how her company empowers and supports women to live their best lives, how Diana Health works with hospitals, and how to choose the right fundraising partners. Divakaran and Condliffe also delve into how the new presidential administration will make an impact on women’s health into 2025, including the women’s research movement, abortion, and potential major changes around Medicaid. 

Links from this episode:  

HealthEdge
.406 Ventures
Diana Health 

In this special video episode of Breaking Health / In this episode of Breaking Health, guest host Payal Agrawal Divakaran, partner at .406 Ventures, speaks with Kristina Saffran, cofounder and CEO of Equip about providing accessible eating disorder treatment for patients everywhere. Saffran shares the origins of Equip, busts some myths surrounding eating disorders, and explains how her company pays for health plans. She also discusses the importance of working with the right cofounders, picking the right VC partners, navigating rough patches, fundraising, and more. Divakaran and Saffran also share their thoughts on contemporary topics and trends in the industry in a lightning round. 

Links from this episode:  

HealthEdge
.406 Ventures
Equip 

In this episode of Breaking Health, host Steve Krupa speaks with Jon Maschmeyer, partner at Permira. Maschmeyer discusses what it’s like working with executives and what they learn from him about investments, what sector has the most activity today in terms of deal flow, what attributes he finds exciting when considering a deal, and the key to working with private equity as a management team. He also shares his thoughts on how lower rates for high-volume drugs affect other countries, specialty pharma, and how healthcare has evolved in the past 20 years. 

At the Digital Healthcare Innovation Summit WEST 2024, leaders of the AI technology industry discussed the tangible progress that’s been made, identified which tools are useful (and not so useful), and charted the realities—and sensationalism—around how generative AI will reshape the future of health systems, care delivery, and personalized treatments. They also shared their thoughts on new challenges that have arisen, such as what characteristics are associated with organizations that can make it in this new age, regulatory framework, liability cases that have occurred since AI’s deployment, and more. 
 
Links from this episode:  

DHIS West 2024
PANEL DISCUSSION: Generative AI in Healthcare: Hype or Hope 

When is the best time to make an investment? In the healthcare industry, this can be tricky to determine. In this episode of Breaking Health, host Steve Krupa speaks with Andrew Adams, Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Oak HC/FT, about organizing capital into the right companies, where the healthcare industry is going in terms of deployment of technology, and the state of the market today. With a broad and impressive portfolio, Adams provides valuable insight and techniques on finding the right opportunities to invest, as well as value-based hotspots and new ventures that Oak HC/FT is conducting.   

Links from this episode:  
HealthEdge 
Oak HC/FT