Virtual MAT Provider PursueCare Nets $7M

PursueCare — a Middletown, Connecticut-based provider of virtual medication-assisted treatment (MAT) services — has raised $7 million in an oversubscribed Series A2 funding round led by OCA Ventures, Seyen Capital, Wasabi Investors and other health care investors.

The round brings PursueCare’s total funding raised up to $12.8 million, according to the fundraising tracking website Crunchbase.

Founded in 2019, PursueCare provides treatment to individuals for a variety of substance use disorders (SUDs), including opioid use disorder (OUD) and alcoholism, by way of a smartphone app, tablet or computer.

Services are delivered by a team of licensed psychiatric providers, counselors, care coordinators and physicians, with patients receiving medication prescriptions like suboxone that are delivered by the company’s pharmacy. Along with prescriptions, PursueCare also connects patients to counseling, psychotherapy and cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for underlying co-occurring conditions.

PursueCare’s platform — which can be accessed on its website or by downloading an app — is available 24/7, allowing patients to receive assistance in private settings and on a same-day referral basis.

PursueCare administers services to individuals in partnership with health care providers, higher education institutions and workplaces. The company accepts most private insurances along with Medicare and Medicaid, and offers low-cost, self-pay programs for patients in Connecticut, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Ohio, Rhode Island, Vermont and West Virginia.

PursueCare joins New York-based Ophelia as the latest virtual MAT provider to raise funding amidst a nationwide SUD crisis, which has been worsened by the pandemic. According to recent provisional data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), drug overdose deaths in a 12-month period ending in September 2020 rose 29% compared to the prior 12-month span.

PursueCare said that it plans to use its newly raised funding to continue implementing integrated programs with health care systems, hospitals, community health centers and universities, along with enhancing its virtual care experience for patients.

“The bottom line is that our healthcare infrastructure is significantly struggling when it comes to providing timely access to evidence-based substance use treatment,” PursueCare CEO and co-founder Nick Mercadante said in a press release announcing the funding. “With this latest investment, we are now positioned to expand our low-barrier services to more patients, whether they are in need of transition from settings that don’t traditionally present solutions for long-term recovery, or just need a way to privately access care at home on their own time.”