Tech companies are putting an ever-wider array of health-related services into patients’ hands, and despite regulatory hurdles, investors are lining up to back them.
In the latest such deal, Chicago startup Opternative Inc. has raised $6 million in Series A venture funding for an app that lets people take an eye exam using their smartphones and a personal computer at home.
In 2015, telehealth startups such as Joyable and Talkspace for mental health, Curology for dermatology, and many others attracted venture funding. And one early telehealth player, Teladoc Inc., went public representing an exit in July for backers including Kleiner Perkins.
According to Opternative co-founder and Chief Executive Aaron Dallek, Opternative’s app captures data about a patient’s vision and sends it to a licensed, local opthamologist for evaluation. Within 24 hours, the eye doctor then writes a new prescription for glasses or contacts for the patient. The exam costs $40 for either a contacts or glasses prescription and $60 for both.
