Accolade, a Seattle-based company that operates a technology platform to help employees navigate healthcare, landed a $20 million investment from health insurance giant Humana as part of an ongoing partnership between the two companies.
The money is being used to fuel a healthcare benefits experience for employees, called Humana with Accolade, that the two companies first announced in March. They also left open the possibility of investing in products aimed at “solution flexibility, service delivery, partner integration, and economic value in healthcare.”
“[Accolade’s] connected platform and personalized service create impressive member satisfaction and value for employers,” Chris Hunter, president of Humana’s group and military segment, said in a statement. “Given our existing relationship, we see the opportunity for Accolade to emerge as a key element of the value proposition for Humana’s employer group business, further enhancing the benefits of the service to our joint customers and their members.”
The companies plan to grow their customer base, geographic footprint and headcount following the investment.
Accolade is led by Raj Singh and Mike Hilton, who co-founded Concur, an expense software firm that sold to SAP for $8.3 billion. The company’s last big cash infusion came in the form of a $50 million round in 2017. Prior to this investment, Accolade had raised a total of $220 million since it was founded, according to PitchBook.
Humana said it was drawn to Accolade for the company’s technology, which uses machine learning to create more customized experiences for employees. Accolade also employs healthcare workers to answer questions from customers through a mobile app. The idea is to increase engagement among members and reduce overall costs for employers.
“Humana has been a supportive and successful partner from day one, and we’re happy to extend our relationship to a level that more deeply aligns our vision and supports our product and service delivery in exciting ways,” said Singh.
Humana with Accolade is currently available in the Milwaukee, Wis., and Cincinnati, Ohio regions.
