Pioneering virtual-first, multicenter model connects expert medical opinion, primary care, mental health, and navigation capabilities to tackle specialty care access and high costs nationwide

New model brings specialist appointments in under seven days and in-home medical prescription, diagnostic and monitoring support

Included Health, a new kind of healthcare company delivering virtual care and navigation for millions of people nationwide, is expanding its integrated care delivery platform to include the Specialty Care Clinic, a multicenter, virtual-first clinic that will provide rapid access to medical specialists and comprehensive support for the most prevalent and costly specialty care needs.

Diseases and conditions requiring specialty care — from cancer to obesity — are major drivers of decreased quality of life, individual medical debt¹, and the unsustainable healthcare cost trend for employers². While whole person care models that blend primary care with specialty treatment can improve outcomes and reduce costs³, individuals nationwide⁴ face uneven specialty care access and poor coordination resulting in fragmented, inefficient, and high-cost care journeys.

Starting with a dedicated Cancer Center, Center for Metabolic Health, and Center for Women’s Health, Included Health’s Specialty Care Clinic will provide end-to-end care access, guidance, and advocacy throughout a multitude of specialty care journeys.

“There's a glaring absence of solutions that cater to the full needs of individuals and families throughout what are often long, complicated specialty care journeys. It is our time to advance patient-centered specialty care,” said Owen Tripp, chief executive officer and founder of Included Health. “We’ve long known that to truly impact both the cost and quality of care, we must guide people towards the best care paths and support them in an integrated, personalized way. We’re excited to do this for people and for employers, both of whom are overwhelmed with an excess of point solutions and with the repercussions of the fragmentation across the specialty care continuum.”

With over a decade of experience connecting millions of people with the most qualified specialists nationwide, Included Health is uniquely positioned to deliver virtual-first specialty care beyond traditional geographical barriers and limitations. In addition to its on-staff multidisciplinary clinical team, Included Health has built a leading nationwide network of 4,000-plus specialists and subspecialists, further strengthened by partnerships with over 40 hospitals and health systems. With the Specialty Care Clinic, members will benefit from a dedicated care team led by specialists experienced in everything from symptom management to acute needs, with integrated primary care and mental health support. In addition to personalized plans addressing physical and mental health, specialist appointments in under seven days, and in-home support for medical prescriptions, diagnostics and monitoring, members will receive assistance with administrative tasks such as scheduling appointments and organizing records and scans.

The Specialty Care Clinic is an evolution of Included Health’s Expert Medical Opinion service, renowned for delivering accurate diagnoses and tailored treatment plans that save an average of $9,800 per member case and lead to improved outcomes in 66 percent of cases. Each Specialty Care Center will operate as part of an integrated care delivery model alongside the company’s primary care, mental health, navigation and advocacy services. To learn more about Included Health’s Specialty Care Clinic, visit https://includedhealth.com/employers/specialty-care-clinic/

About Included Health

Included Health is a new kind of healthcare company. We combine people and technology to guide and deliver care differently. Working with employers and health plans nationwide, we provide millions of people with a healthcare experience that is more personalized, accessible, equitable, affordable, and cohesive. With us, it’s all included; care and support online, around the corner, and in the home for everyday and urgent needs including primary, specialty, and behavioral healthcare. Our model is designed to treat people better. Learn more at includedhealth.com.

Statements in this press release that describe Included Health's business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions or goals are forward-looking statements, subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those presented.

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¹ https://www.statnews.com/2023/05/23/financial-toxicity-cancer-costs-cost-sharing/#:~:text=Consequently%2C%20more%20than%2040%25%20of,protection%20because%20of%20their%20cancer.

² https://www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2023/08/24/employer-survey

³ https://www.cms.gov/blog/pathways-specialty-care-coordination-and-integration-population-based-models

⁴ https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10170908/

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