Healthbox, a three-month accelerator program for healthcare-focused startups that kicks off in Chicago next month, announced Tuesday the 10 companies selected for its inaugural class.
Chicago-based incubator Sandbox Industries, drugstore chain Walgreens and BlueCross Blue Shield Venture Fund are among the backers of Healthbox, which was announced in May. Each of the 10 companies will receive $50,000 in seed capital and three months of mentoring and other resources aimed at growing their business quickly. The three months culminate in an Investor Day where companies make formal presentations to potential funders.
Healthbox said it drew hundreds of applications from 26 states and eight countries. Founder Nina Nashif said the program wanted its class to represent diversity in both geography and area of focus.
"There's a lot of people trying to address the same problem in the (healthcare) industry," Nashif said. "We tried to find companies looking at it from a different lens that have a little bit of a unique approach to how they're viewing (that problem) – for example, the idea of incentivizing people around using (employer) wellness programs."
The 10 companies will work out of a collaborative loft space that Healthbox is setting up in River North. Eight of the 10 startups are based outside of Chicago and will be relocating, at least temporarily, to Chicago for the program. Healthbox does not require companies to move permanently to Chicago, but Nashif said some may choose to stay.
"Some have talked about trying to find talent in Chicago," she said. "A lot of these companies, since they are in the early stages of development, if they're creating relationships in Chicago, they may decide to stay here or have parts of their business located in Chicago."
The 10 Healthbox startups are:
PUSH Wellness (Chicago), a provider of employer wellness incentive programs.
PaJR-Patient Journey Record (Dublin, Ireland), a company whose cloud-based machine learning technology identifies patients that have a high risk of readmission.
SwipeSense (Evanston), a maker of a portable hand-sanitation device that also uses real-time data analytics cut down on hospital-acquired infections.
CareWire (Minneapolis), a company that provides an automated text messaging system to communicate with patients.
The Coupon Doc (Atlanta), a company whose technology platform gives consumers access to discounts on prescription and over-the-counter medications.
Corengi (Seattle), a provider of an online platform that helps patients find ongoing clinical research studies.
Iconic Data (Norcross, Georgia), a provider of a cloud-based platform that helps physicians manage their patient lists.
UnitedPreference (Princeton, N.J.), a company whose payments network includes prepaid cards that members of employer health plans can use to buy products.
DermLink (Atherton, Calif.), a maker of a cloud-based application that provides remote diagnosis of dermatology cases.
CareHubs (Beaverton, Ore.), an online social platform connecting patients and healthcare providers.
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