Virtual health care guide HealthJoy raises $3 million in seed funding

The River North-based company — founded in 2014 by CEO Justin Holland and president Doug Morse-Schindler — sells a platform called “JOY” that acts as a virtual healthcare assistant for those trying to cut costs and navigate their insurance plan.

EXCERPT:

Healthtech startup HealthJoy, whose artificial intelligence platform helps consumers navigate healthcare-related decisions, has raised $3 million in seed funding from GoHealth and angel investors.

The River North-based company — founded in 2014 by CEO Justin Holland and president Doug Morse-Schindler — sells a platform called “JOY” that acts as a virtual healthcare assistant for those trying to cut costs and navigate their insurance plan.

“The way we see it is healthcare is very individualized and very complex,” Holland said.

The platform, available via app and website, uses artificial intelligence to help consumers navigate a litany of situations, like picking the most cost-effective prescription or reviewing and negotiating medical bills. Patients can use Joy’s human-powered concierge service to find physicians or answer questions about healthcare benefits.

The company also offers telemedicine services for minor conditions like an ear infection or mild flu, where patients might need medical attention or medication but don’t necessarily require a trip to the emergency room.

The company works with brokers, including Chicago-based online health insurance marketplace GoHealth, to sell the product a la carte or bundled with a healthcare plan. Costs begin at $20 a month, Holland said. The company said it has about 22,000 active users.

“For the last two years, we’ve been focusing on people with individual plans, people who have purchased health coverage through the marketplace, or Obamacare,” Holland said.

Those individual plans can be confusing for consumers, he said. Going forward, the company will continue focusing on that channel as well as selling to employers and directly to consumers.

Holland said HealthJoy, which now has 65 employees, partnered with GoHealth early on. GoHealth led the funding for the seed round, which HealthJoy announced last week…

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