Happify Health secures $73M to build out digital solutions for health plans, pharma companies

Happify Health, a startup building digital therapeutics for people with chronic diseases, raised $73 million in new funding.

The investments were led by Deerfield Management Company and included participation from Omega Capital Partners, ION Crossover Partners and existing investors. The fresh capital is part of a new series D and other "related financing," the company said.

Happify Health has raised $123 million to date.

The New York City-based company, which launched in 2012, combines digital therapeutics and care delivery solutions to help manage chronic conditions and aims to improve both mental and physical health.

The startup says it blends gaming, science, people and technology into building its solutions. Happify Health's platform is based on the sciences of positive psychology, cognitive behavioral therapy, mindfulness and other proven behavior change disciplines and has been validated through published peer-reviewed research, according to the company.

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The company will use the fresh capital to build out specialized solutions for pharmaceutical companies, enterprise customers and health plans.

Earlier this year, the startup announced a partnership with pharmaceutical company Almirall to launch a digital wellness program called Claro for psoriasis patients. Almost one-third of people with moderate to severe psoriasis suffer from mental health issues like anxiety and depression. 

It also has a partnership with Sanofi to offer a mental health digital therapeutic for people with multiple sclerosis.

The fresh capital will help support additional investment into developing advances in artificial-intelligence- and machine-learning-based models that power Anna, a software-based coach designed to support and engage individuals for several chronic conditions, most notably mental health, Happify Health executives said. 

The Happify Health platform is available globally in 10 languages, supports more than 10 chronic conditions and covers more than 20 million lives, according to the company.

The company’s digital therapeutic platform addresses the symptoms of patients who suffer from stress, anxiety and depression and comorbid conditions exacerbated by these mental health disorders. For people with chronic conditions, Happify Health develops both specialized prescription digital therapeutics that are FDA-cleared and prescribed by physicians as well as non-prescription core solutions.

RELATED: Almirall enlists Happify to boost psoriasis patients' mental health with digital therapeutics

"Our ability to add a well-rounded group of seasoned investors, led by Deerfield, will further prepare us to execute against the tremendous opportunity ahead of us. Today, our platform covers more than 20 million lives with more than 5 million individuals having received care through our platform. We are also working with five leading pharmaceutical partners on digital therapeutic solutions and four out of the five national payors to help support their members’ mental health and chronic illness needs. We look forward to reaching an even bigger audience with the support of our new partners,” said Tomer Ben-Kiki, co-founder and CEO at Happify Health, in a statement.

“To bring to life our mission of healing all people, one person at a time, it is critical that we accelerate the growth of our platform in several key areas. This financing will drive the development of a variety of new care modalities on our connected health platform,” said Ofer Leidner, president and co-founder at Happify Health.

The company plans to expand its team of scientists, researchers and digital health experts as it develops new products, forges strategic partnerships and broadens the platform, Leidner said.

Happify Health has been expanding its team, recently hiring a chief medical officer and a chief brand officer.

“Happify Health’s evidence-based approach, world-class partnerships, and patient focus enables the company to tackle significant challenges in healthcare. We are excited to partner with the entire Happify Health team in their mission of helping empower everyone to live healthier lives,” said James Flynn, managing partner of Deerfield Management Company, in a statement.