We look at what is already out there and build expertise around that. What drew you to the CEO role at Folx Health?įolx isn’t just a place that is affirming for our community. If LGBTQIA+ health care could look like anything, “what would we want it to look like?” The answer involved a diverse network of queer and trans specialized clinicians covering everything from primary care, to family planning, to hormone replacement therapy for trans patients. “We started from a first principles approach,” says Guzmán of her first few months in the job. Breitenstein, the company’s founder and then-CEO, was looking for someone to take over the day-to-day running of the business. We are more likely to suffer from heart disease we are more likely to have mental health issues the way we start our families is different.”ĭouillet Guzmán was the CMO of the online learning platform Skillshare when she was approached about the top job at Folx Health. “We exist within a model that was not built for us, and more often than not it is openly discriminatory. If we meet all of that, we will go on to our A round.“The answer is a resounding yes,” says Douillet Guzmán, who is herself a member of the LGBTQIA+ community. “We look forward to rolling out those first products, continuing to build our network, have the operational boxes checked, and evaluate the data. “We are looking to verify our initial data, but even if we come close, this will be a steep ramp of growth,” she added. The company is operating in approximately six states and is expected to be in nearly all of the U.S. “It is at the intersection of clinical and lifestyle, so we want to feel seen, heard, celebrated and not the outright judgement.”Īs Folx begins seeing more patients–the hard launch will be in January–the new funding will go toward building out clinical networks and developing offerings around hormone replacement therapy and sexual health. “Family creation is a really interesting place where we need health care,” she added. Folx is also assisting with family creation, an aspect of health care not often tailored for the queer and trans communities, Breitenstein said. The startup offers gender reaffirming hormone therapy, erectile dysfunction treatment, at-home STI testing, one-on-one consultations, and prescriptions priced with or without insurance. And the population continues to grow, especially as more people don’t identify as either male or female. She estimates there are 11 million people in this group, many of whom are under 30 and don’t have a primary care physician. The population Folx is working with is “grossly underestimated,” Breitenstein said. Rather than just putting doctors online, her approach is to pull apart what health care means to the LGBTQIA+ community, as well as what it means for people to go to the doctor in order to tailor a care experience to the person instead of the basic model of diagnosis and treat, she added.įolx has built a network of 12 clinicians so far. “I looked at my own community, particularly the queer community, who often have horrible experiences, accessibility and discrimination.” “As a product person, I like that you can pick a group of people and build a telehealth experience,” Breitenstein told Crunchbase News. While looking at consumer telehealth platforms, she was attracted to their accessibility and care experience. Breitenstein is raising the bar of health care with the launch of Folx Health, which she touts as the first digital health provider designed with the medical needs and goals of the LGBTQIA+ community in mind.įounded in Boston this year, the company secured $4.4 million in seed funding from Define Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners and Polaris Partners.īreitenstein comes from both health and investment backgrounds as a co-founder of Humedica and co-founder and partner at Optum Ventures.
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