Terminally-ill patients and those suffering from extreme pain are usually given opioids by doctors. Doctors often prescribe opioids, also known as narcotics, to treat severe or chronic pain. Patients recovering from surgery and those with chronic pain brought on by cancer or an injury use them. But these drugs are quite problematic and lead to severe side effects. Opioids are often over-prescribed and under-managed in the United States. Ankit Gupta, the founder of Bicycle Health, launched this company in 2017 to provide opioid use disorder (MOUD) treatment.
Read on further to know more about this company and how it operates.
About Bicycle Health
Bicycle Health initially began from a single clinic in Redwood City, California. But the founder soon realized that they will be able to access a wider customer base if they established an online presence. The virtual app was launched in 2020. It offers scaled, person-to-person care that is affordable, and compassionate, and includes care coordination, behavioral health treatment, medication management, and support groups to help patients wherever they are in the recovery process.
The mission of the company is to provide valuable service to others. Today, they provide treatment to more than 18,000 patients across 29 states. The breakthrough medication founded by Bicycle Health serves as the main approach to treating opioid use disorder. They can successfully support patients as they transition off their preferred opioids thanks to their technology-enabled and evidence-based treatment. Around 95% of patients have reported no withdrawal symptoms. Bicycle Health has achieved a 40% higher success rate when compared to those set by in-person clinics.
Interesting Concept Behind the Brand Name
Ankit, the founder, had learned how to ride a bicycle as a child. He feels that the term, Bicycle Health, is a good metaphor for recovery. Just as one learns a new skill of riding a bike and it stays with you forever, similarly, recovery is a skill that you learn and use your entire life.
Just like falling off a bike and getting up to ride again is a part of learning, relapse is a part of recovery. Just as you feel a sense of freedom by riding a bike, you get a sense of freedom by following the path of recovery as well. The recovery path taught by Bicycle Health makes one free from the grip of opioid use disorder and one achieves the freedom to live life on their terms.
Bicycle Health Business Model
Patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) are treated by Bicycle Health using a thorough, research-based treatment plan. Patients at Bicycle Health have access to a highly qualified team of medical specialists, a personalized treatment plan, peer support groups, and FDA-approved medications for OUD that lessen withdrawal symptoms, aid in the prevention of overdose, support long-term recovery, and even save lives. Regardless of where a patient is in their recovery process, Bicycle Health consistently upholds its commitment to providing them with high-quality OUD recovery care.
To assist patients in stopping their opioid use, they provide Medication for Addiction Treatment (MAT) with Suboxone (buprenorphine/naloxone).
95% of patients receiving this transformative treatment report no withdrawal symptoms after 7 days when combined with their compassionate care model. The patient’s life may be altered by it.
They incorporate behavioral health supports, such as connections to online support groups and in-person and individual services, with buprenorphine/naloxone (Suboxone) treatment. They work in the following way:
- Quick, Free Call
They initially have a telephonic conversation with the patient to understand their problem in detail and analyze whether their medication and treatment are a good fit. All communications are kept strictly confidential. They are available 24/7 for any support or information.
- First Appointment
After the patient signs up, they get to meet their care provider and receive their full treatment plan. Their expert clinicians focus on opioid use disorder. The treatments are quite convenient and can be fixed as per the patient’s time and convenience. The virtual platform not only speeds up the delivery of care but also aids in patient monitoring to ensure continuity of care, which, according to many experts, is difficult for providers to do without the right technology.
- Suboxone
If the care provider decides on Suboxone being the apt treatment, the patient can pick it up from a nearby chemist the same day and begin with their treatment. They also coordinate with your medical insurance partners to ensure the patient pays the minimum for the medicines. Bicycle Health’s team also prescribes other pain-relievers one might need to ease discomfort. Suboxone is FDA-approved and the best available medication so far for opioid use disorder.
Funding and Investors
Investors of Bicycle Health include Cobalt Ventures, Questa Capital, City Light Capital, InterAlpen Partners, Frist Cressey Ventures and 4 more. Bicycle Health raised a total of $87.28M. The funding will help Bicycle Health expand its clinical and technological teams, develop its platform, deepen its partnerships, and conduct more in-depth research into the effectiveness of its model.
Milestones and Achievements
In the past year, the company has:
- Added 29 new states to its list of patient-treating jurisdictions, with plans to operate in 35 states by the beginning of 2023.
- Has completed a $50 million Series B funding round, bringing the total amount raised by the company to $83 million.
- Bicycle Health has increased its staff by 134%, including the hiring of two senior executives, CTO Chris Norris and CCO Justin Guadagno.
- Exceeded 20,000 patient enrollments, achieving a significant patient acquisition milestone.
- 36 insurance companies at the state and federal levels were added to its contracted and appointed partnerships, with a contract with Cigna Evernorth in July serving as a highlight.
- Selected as one of TIME’s 100 Most Influential Companies, recognized as a winner of the 2022 Stevie Awards for Great Employers, and named a finalist for the “Mental and Behavioral Health” category of the UCSF Health Hub Digital Health Awards.
- Ankit Gupta, CEO, and founder, was honored by Business Insider’s 2022 30 Under 40 list and Fortune’s 2022 40 Under 40 awards.
Future Plans
Since it was founded five years ago, Bicycle Health has been dedicated to using telehealth to give patients with opioid use disorder (OUD) more convenient, affordable, and efficient treatment options. They are proud to have formed the Bicycle Health advisory board, which brings together some of the top authorities in the field of addiction treatment and recovery, as another significant step toward their mission.
Bicycle Health’s new advisory board, which was created to bring together leaders from various fields of addiction treatment and healthcare, will assist them in continuing to create treatment plans using the most recent knowledge and research. As they continue to develop the best treatment plans to meet people today wherever they may be-they are thrilled to welcome these board members to the Bicycle Health family.
Conclusion
With the goal of reducing the stigma surrounding opioid addiction and giving those in need access to affordable, practical, and private tele-OUD treatment, Bicycle Health aims to address the nation’s top public health crisis. The company’s “whole person” treatment philosophy encourages patients to concentrate on their life passions and objectives, which has been shown to be crucial for recovery.
