Goldman Sachs wants to change that. Mahmee, a six-year-old maternal healthcare startup, has announced the closing of a $9.2 million Series A funding round led by Goldman’s Growth Equity Business.
High maternal mortality rates in the US, especially among minority groups, have “become a systemic issue and something that we’re not paying attention to,” said Mahmee founder and CEO Melissa Hanna. “But we can also turn this around.”
“The reality is that most of the records systems that we use to track health information on mothers and babies don’t talk to each other,” said Hanna.
Mahmee creates a unified record for each patient that shows all the health data of a mother in one place. The service also offers access to a national network of community-based health providers including in-house nurses and care coordinators who provide live support seven days a week. The coordinators monitor health needs, offer referrals to health professionals, and assist with questions and concerns from expectant mothers.
The company also works directly with institutions by selling their nurse-led coordination programs to a number of health services, medical groups and insurance companies. Mahmee currently has over 750 providers and organizations in its network in 44 states.
“We’ve been able to create some lifesaving interventions and point out things that other people may have just overlooked by accident or lack of experience,” Hanna said.
Since launching in 2016, Mahmee has served over 15,000 women, Hanna said, and those patients are 10% less likely to have a C-section, and 50% less likely to deliver prematurely.
“Disparities in accessing high-quality maternal and perinatal care contribute to poor health outcomes in underserved communities and substantial costs for the broader healthcare system,” said Suzanne Gauron, global head of Launch With GS, a Goldman Sachs program that aims to increase access to capital for underrepresented entrepreneurs and investors.”We believe Mahmee is well positioned to improve the lives of mothers and babies by narrowing critical opportunity gaps in care and outcomes.”
“If we even scratch the surface of solving this problem for any mothers and babies in this country,” said Hanna, “we have unlocked billions of dollars of potential here.”
