Fueled with a technology platform, recent leadership additions and the ability to provide outcomes data, Spring Health is continuing to move into the value-based care space.
The New York-based company recently hired Headspace vet Todd Hill as its new senior vice president of payer strategy. Spring Health’s focus on outcomes and removing waste in health care makes it prime for value-based care, Hill told Behavioral Health Business.
“I think value-based care really presents this amazing opportunity for groups like Spring Health or anyone else who delivers care in a way that removes all the waste from the system,” he said. “And [it’s an] opportunity for providers who can deliver care more efficiently in improving health care outcomes from populations.”
Still, value-based care isn’t for every payer, Hill noted. In Spring Health’s experience, value-based partnerships often take both an interest and capabilities from the payer.
Founded in 2016, Spring Health Spring Health is a B2B-focused mental health startup – one that has made plenty of headlines in recent months. The company had one of the highest valuations among digital mental health companies at $2 billion at the end of 2021, buoyed by a $190 million Series C round led by Swedish growth investment firm Kinnevik.
For future partnerships where there is a value component, Spring Health’s outcomes data could help prove cost savings, Hill said.
“We’re achieving the level of readmission rates that are industry leading and were able to do so in far fewer clinical sessions,” he said. “That drives tremendous savings.”
Behavioral health comorbidities drive costs for other chronic conditions like diabetes and heart disease. This has led to ROI for partners and total cost of care savings, he said.
“So given what we’re seeing in our outcomes, we have a very strong appetite for value-based care,” he said. “And in fact, we already have one of our first agreements in place where economics is tied to total cost of care.”
Of course, technology also plays a large role in value-based care, Hill said, noting that the lack of technology was one of the reasons that value-based care really failed in the early 90s.
“For instance, we employ aspects of value-based care within our own platform,” Hill said. “So our platform allows us to identify who our best providers are with the best outcomes and to structure incentives around ways to deliver care to compensate them appropriately for the value of the care they deliver.”
However, Spring Health is focused on using technology in order to help support clinicians’ relationships, not replace them.
“While the data underpinning the platform is essential and allows us to deliver on our mission, we really see that technology in a supportive role, but not replacing that all important clinician-patient relationship,” Hill said.
But Spring Health isn’t looking to make value-based care a part of every payer partnership. The startup tries to match its services to the payer’s interest and capabilities, Hill explained.
“It’s been my experience that some payers are much more ready for a value-based arrangement than others,” he said. “We view it as an important tool, depending on the level of readiness with the payer – and their level of appetite.”
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