Allina Health System and a Boston-based venture capital firm are leading a $20 million fundraising effort for a startup company that will develop "hospital-at-home" programs in conjunction with health systems and health plans.
Called Inbound Health, the new business will have its headquarters in Minneapolis. It builds on Allina's continuing push since the COVID-19 pandemic to provide hospital services at home when possible, since inpatient capacity has been limited at times.
Inbound Health will work with clients to create "skilled nursing-at-home" programs as well as hospital-level services, according to an announcement Tuesday from Minneapolis-based Allina and Flare Capital Partners, which is based in Boston.
"The home hospital programs that we've scaled to thousands of patients here in Minnesota are rooted in our population health drivers of delivering safe, high quality, affordable care that's timely and convenient to access," Lisa Shannon, president and chief executive at Allina Health System, said in a news release.
In lieu of new capital, Allina has invested intellectual property as a payment-in-kind to retain ownership in Inbound Health, the health system said in a statement to the Star Tribune.
"This includes care model, the people, the technology and the operating processes that Inbound Health is now leveraging to scale this valuable service nationwide," Allina said.
Hospital-at-home programs allow some patients who otherwise would be admitted to facilities to receive care at home through a combination of telehealth and in-person visits from nurses and other caregivers.
Inbound Health will provide the tools for launching at-home care programs, including technology for remote monitoring and guidance on negotiating payment terms with health insurers, according to the Tuesday announcement.
