Digital health company Truepill has combined pharmacy fulfillment, telehealth and at-home testing services for consumers and is aiming to expand its reach with health plans, providers and employer groups fueled by $142 million in fresh capital.
With the latest funding round, Truepill has reached unicorn status, with its total valuation at $1.6 billion, according to the company.
The series D funding round was led by an undisclosed partner, with participation from existing investors Initialized Capital and TI Platform Management. Truepill has raised $256 million in total funding to date, including a $75 million series C in August 2020.
When startup Truepill launched four years ago, it initially focused on providing the pharmacy fulfillment backbone for direct-to-consumer brands like Hims and Nurx. The company's ambitions have grown as it expanded its technology capabilities, including the launch of a nationwide telehealth network back in July 2020.
Truepill has seen exponential demand for its consumer healthcare platform. When COVID-19 fundamentally disrupted the healthcare industry, the need for digital experiences soared and Truepill’s growth accelerated at an unprecedented rate, according to the company.
In September, the company announced plans to roll out an at-home lab testing network, boosted by a $75 million series C funding round. Truepill said it has built out a network of certified and accredited labs since then and now supports a catalog of more than 100 at-home tests and thousands of in-person tests. These services are white-labeled for use across various types of healthcare companies, Truepill said, and can be initiated by patients or deployed as part of an organization's COVID-19 wellness program.
In May, Truepill debuted two new core services, telehealth and diagnostics, alongside its existing pharmacy service. In the past year and a half, the company also launched a virtual pharmacy, the first-ever white-labeled pharmacy e-commerce platform and also expanded pharmacy fulfillment capabilities, opening multiple new facilities.
Truepill says it has shipped nearly 10 million prescriptions, processed nearly one million diagnostic tests and facilitated over 50,000 telehealth visits per week, to date.
“When we started Truepill in 2016, we set out to revolutionize the patient experience from the backend and, in the process, created the defining platform for digital consumer healthcare,” said Umar Afridi, CEO and co-founder of Truepill, in a statement. “No matter what program they’re building, our partners can pick the components they want, tailor a solution to their specific needs and scale up operations as they grow. Our flexible B2B model truly creates limitless possibilities for the future of consumer health, and we’re excited to continue deepening our work within the broader healthcare ecosystem.”
With the new investment, Truepill will target its services to insurers, health brands, pharmaceutical manufacturers, health systems, government agencies, employer groups and school systems. The company will also continue to grow its headcount, adding hundreds of roles across the entire organization, including engineering, business development and pharmacy.
Truepill also plans to open six new pharmacy and OTC fulfillment facilities by early 2022 in California, Illinois, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio and Pennsylvania.
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By combining pharmacy fulfillment, telehealth, at-home testing and other services, Truepill is looking to offer its B2B healthcare customers a digital, end-to-end platform that's convenient for end users.
“The last year has made it abundantly clear that consumer-friendly health experiences are a universal need—whether you’re a healthcare company modernizing how you treat patients, an insurance provider looking to create better e-commerce offerings or simply an employer trying to create a safe work environment,” said Sid Viswanathan, president and co-founder of Truepill, in a statement.
“Now that Truepill’s infrastructure is firmly in place across telehealth, diagnostics and pharmacy, we are focused on partnering with companies of all shapes, sizes and specialties to build innovative healthcare programs—whether it’s insurance-backed DTC prescriptions, a return-to-office COVID-19 testing platform or beyond," Viswanathan said.
The company's platform-based approach is an attempt to distinguish the company from some of the other digital pharmacies that have gained steam—and investors’ support—in recent years.
Among the latest raises has come from Capsule, which hauled in $300 million last month to support its digital pharmacy and accompanying services including telemedicine and mental health support. Alto Pharmacy also closed a $250 million series D round early in 2020, while Medly Pharmacy and Now Rx brought in $100 million and $30 million, respectively, later in the summer.
Each of these players is pushing forward with competitive pressure coming from Amazon Pharmacy, which has launched a prescription benefits service and new price comparison features.
Amazon also has signaled an interest in expanding into at-home medical tests and launching a third-party marketplace for general home diagnostics services, according to an Insider report.