Online reproductive health portal Nurx has raised $52 million in new capital. Its Series C funding accounts for $32 million of that total, with an additional $20 million coming from debt financing, according to Tech CrunchThe round led by Kleiner Perkins Digital Growth Fund and Union Square Ventures with participation from Reproductive Health Investors Alliance, Dreamers VC (actor Will Smith’s venture capital fund), Lowercase Capital and Y Combinator. The round also includes both equity and debt from Triple Point Capital.
following a $36 million Series B last year, this investment brings Nurx’s total funding to $91.3 million.
WHAT THEYRE DOING
Nurx offers telemedicine prescription and delivery of birth control pills, with a mission to make these drugs available to women in rural areas without access to reproductive health care as well as those who may be discouraged from seeking medical care. social stigma. The company serves more than 200,000 patients and reports 20% growth in new patients month over month. It is currently available in 26 states and the District of Columbia.
The company is expanding into new areas of reproductive health, including HIV prevention drugs PrEP and STI test kitsthat the company launched last month.
WHAT’S THE POINT
The company has many plans for this funding, including introducing additional offerings for what it describes as “sensitive health needs” and growing its user base. Nurx is also investing in growing its vendor team and improving its telemedicine platform and user experience.
MARKET OVERVIEW
Nurx is part of a wave of mail-order telemedicine/pharmacy start-ups focused on particular niche needs, particularly around sensitive topics like reproductive health. These include He she and Roboth of which started out in men’s health but branched out.
The shift to STI testing is also taking the company into the correspondence lab testing space as myLabBox and Everlywellboth of which offer STI testing.
REGISTRATION
“The typical healthcare experience is slow, confusing and expensive and does not leave people feeling empowered to make decisions about their health,” Nurx CEO Varsha Rao said in a statement. “We are incredibly motivated by the impact we have had over the past few years, especially in parts of the country where people turn to us because they have no other choice. By focusing our efforts on health needs that often carry shame and stigma, we are excited to reach more people and provide them with the more responsive health services they need and deserve.
