Helpful, a newly launched app, has successfully raised $7.5 million in seed financing through Redesign Health. The app aims to support the growing number of family caregivers in the U.S. who face increasing demands as their loved ones age. Caregivers often have to manage doctor’s visits, therapy sessions, and daily reminders, which amount to an astonishing $600 billion worth of unpaid care in the country.
Helpful recognizes the challenges faced by over 53 million American caregivers and wants to ease the administrative burden they experience. The app offers a comprehensive solution by bringing together insurance benefits, medical records, and caregiving resources in one convenient place. By doing so, it aims to make the care planning process more efficient and organized for family caregivers.
Among the existing caregiving apps like Wellthy, ianacare, Aidaly, and SupportPay, Helpful distinguishes itself by focusing specifically on the administrative aspects of caregiving. The app integrates essential medical records, including insurance benefits, medications, after-visit summaries, and personalized care plans. It also provides localized caregiver benefits and offers training on various medical conditions.
One notable feature that sets Helpful apart is its ability to showcase a loved one’s insurance benefits. To accomplish this, the company had to creatively leverage the most recent regulatory requirements for payors and providers since no API currently exists to access this information.
Wes Donohoe, the founder of Helpful and previously the chief product officer for primary care practice Everside Health, witnessed the toll that caregiving takes on family and friends, motivating him to create this app. The company has already secured a payor partner and has a waitlist of around 4,000 people, growing at an impressive rate of 2,000 people per week.
With the backing of the $7.5 million seed financing, the plan for Helpful is to further develop and integrate its app, ensuring it provides the most comprehensive and user-friendly solution for family caregivers. The company’s vision is to alleviate the administrative challenges faced by caregivers, allowing them to focus more on providing care and support to their loved ones.
