Workforce wellbeing firm Virgin Pulse snaps up engagement device Welltok

This morning worker wellbeing firm Virgin Pulse snapped up client well being engagement device Welltok for an undisclosed sum. 

Welltok works with well being programs, well being plans and enormous employers to assist inspire their members or employees concerned of their wellbeing and well being. 

“They’ve two main capabilities. They’ve what I am going to name a multimodal outreach functionality, the place they’re reaching out to predominantly healthcare customers to activate them to take actions on their healthcare in a manner that their shoppers want them to do it,” Chris Michalak, CEO of Virgin Pulse, advised MobiHealthNews

“Then 18% of the enterprise is within the wellbeing house, similar to Virgin Pulse within the wellbeing aspect of issues. We’re primarily taking extra market share available in the market by means of this acquisition by bringing their functionality and shoppers into ours and enhancing our management place within the wellbeing house.”

The corporate is ready to mix medical engagement and social determinants of well being to realize insights into sufferers. It additionally features a good analytics device that predicts how sufferers will proceed with their wholesome life decisions exterior of a medical setting. Shoppers can use the service to interact with customers and inspire them to take sure actions.

As soon as the acquisition is accomplished, Welltok might be built-in into Virgin Pulse and can function as a single enterprise over time.

WHY IT MATTERS 

The brand new acquisition is poised to convey new shoppers into the Virgin Pulse fold. It additionally opens the corporate to new markets.  

“They’re serving totally different markets than us, notably well being programs and pharma firms. They’re serving these capabilities in a really totally different manner. And so we’ll add new capabilities and new market alternatives to the combo. However we’ll function as a single property,” Michalak stated.

From a buyer perspective, the acquisition will imply extra instruments and choices. 

“I feel it is good for patrons as a result of the chief within the wellbeing house goes so as to add new capabilities to the combo. They are going to add capabilities that we’ve got been constructing out over plenty of years, so it’ll make our underlying wellbeing platform higher.

“After which I feel the opposite factor is these shoppers that they’ve been serving in a well being plan and well being system market may have entry to the capabilities that Virgin Pulse brings to the desk, giving us a chance to that shopper set with a broader set of wellbeing capabilities.”

THE LARGER TREND 

Virgin Pulse has a historical past of acquisitions. For instance, in 2020 the corporate scooped up diabetes start-up Blue Mesa Well being. The latter’s diabetes prevention program Rework was rolled into a brand new providing known as Virgin Pulse Rework. 

In 2018, Virgin Pulse introduced that it was set to merge with RedBrick Well being beneath the Virgin Pulse identify. 

“We’ve performed plenty of acquisitions, and I’d say we attempt to accomplish one in all two issues with these acquisitions. One is to consolidate share within the areas that we’re already the chief. Typically it is simply a chance to convey extra functionality into the wellbeing house,” Michalak stated.

“Welltok is an fascinating one, as a result of it does each of these issues. It provides a brand new functionality, and it additionally offers us larger scale and market share within the wellbeing house.” 

Welltok has additionally been lively within the M&An area. For instance, in 2017, the corporate acquired well being analytics firm Tea Leaves Well being for $80.8 million. In 2018, the corporate acquired Wellpass, an organization that was shaped from the merger of Sense Well being and Voxiva, in an effort to assist deal with the Medicaid and authorities enterprise house.  

ON THE RECORD 

“Welltok and Virgin Pulse complement one another in some ways and share an identical ardour for enhancing folks’s well being and wellbeing,” Welltok CEO Bob Fabbio wrote in an electronic mail to MobiHealthNews. “Collectively, we will simplify and personalize the patron well being expertise by reaching extra folks with personalised, multi-modal engagement that’s extremely highly effective for driving higher outcomes.

“Welltok expands Virgin Pulse’s potential to handle the complete care continuum with our well being plan and well being system enterprise, in addition to supercharge its core capabilities with our multi-channel know-how and strong knowledge and analytics used to focus on with excessive accuracy.”

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