Bright Health raises additional $635 million for expansion

Bright Health announced Tuesday that the startup health insurance company has raised another $635 million to support expansion efforts and build its technology platform.

Since the company was launched in 2015, Minneapolis-based Bright Health has grown in markets where individuals buy coverage under the federal Affordable Care Act as well as by selling Medicare Advantage health plans for seniors.

Three previous rounds of equity financing since 2016 raised a total of $440 million, bringing total fundraising thus far to more than $1 billion.

"This funding will bring us one step closer to creating a value-based health care system that streamlines the health care experience for the consumer," said Mike Mikan, the company's president and vice chairman, in a statement.

Mikan joined Bright Health this summer, becoming one of several former executives from Minnetonka-based UnitedHealth Group to assume leadership positions with the startup insurance carrier. UnitedHealth Group runs UnitedHealthcare, the nation's largest health insurer.

As of March, Bright Health employed 228 people and provided coverage to more than 60,000 subscribers.

For 2019, Bright Health expanded beyond existing markets for the company in Alabama, Arizona and Colorado into portions of New York, Ohio and Tennessee. Expansion plans for next year mean the insurer is now competing in 22 markets in 12 states, including Chicago, Cleveland and Orlando.

Bright Health works with regional health care systems in "narrow network" arrangements, where patients are limited to a subset of doctors and hospitals for in-network care with the goal of better care coordination.

"By eliminating the friction that has traditionally existed between payers and providers, we are creating true alignment to drive down costs and improve health outcomes," Mikan said.

Christopher Snowbeck • 612-673-4744 Twitter: @chrissnowbeck