Thatch

We are thrilled to announce our $38M Series A led by General Catalyst and Index Ventures and with participation from other great investors such as Andreessen Horowitz, Avid Ventures, and The General Partnership. We will use these funds to build a brighter future for the U.S. healthcare system, where employers can provide better health benefits for less money, and employees can keep the same great benefits from job to job. Thatch is on a path to being the default platform every forward-thinking company uses to provide health and wellness benefits for their teams. Read more about our announcement here: https://lnkd.in/e5V-sgZH

Health benefits from the future 🙌

As founders, it's really easy to deprioritize our health in favor of work and growing the company. However, when big health issues come up, it inevitably puts a hard stop on all work and can have lasting effects that reduce efficiency for an extended period time. I experienced the harsh reality of dealing with health issues last week when my finger got slammed in a door and I had to undergo surgery to repair it. It's difficult to focus on the business and customers when the recovery timeline is unclear, the pain meds cause drowsiness, and the followup appointments drain time. Luckily, I will make a full recovery. This incident has been a wake up call for me to keep health in mind as we continue to build and grow. To other founders out there: 1. Minimize injuries and potentially avoid injury prone hobbies - if you get injured at a big tech job, you'll get PTO to recover and the company will keep moving forward. If you get injured at a startup, that directly affects your ability to help customers which might tank the business. 2. Set up comprehensive health insurance with great coverage for the whole team to minimize the stress of healthcare bills. Rippling PEO and Thatch ICHRAs are both great options for small teams. 3. Take preventative measures to avoid health issues. Eating health, exercising frequently, and sleeping adequately are just as important to the health of the company as it is to your own health. When your personal health goes up in flames, so will the. company health. Anyone else have more founder health related tips?

Have you ever wondered what the intersection of #healthtech and #fintech would look like, and what type of opportunities would arise from this space? 🤔💡 Christina Farr and Chris Ellis teamed up to co-write this insightful article on the consumerization of healthcare and what the industry's future might look like in the next decade. Read the full article below 👇

I am very proud to announce that I’ll be joining the team at Thatch to help build a modern health benefits platform. The last two years of running my own legal practice have been incredibly fulfilling. The focus of the practice was in the name–021–and I was fortunate enough to work with a few companies at critical, early inflection points. I worked again with former colleagues and made new relationships, and was consistently humbled by my clients’ collective talent and visions for the future. Thank you to all who trusted me (and 021) to work with them over the past couple of years. This wouldn't be complete without sending a special thank you to the phenomenally talented David Eramian, who joined me on the 021 journey–it was so much fun to work with you again. While I plan to write a post with learnings from my practice, today I want to give some context on why I am over the moon to be joining Thatch. Most of you get your health insurance through your or your partner’s employer. Employer-sponsored plans account for the vast majority of insured Americans and employer-sponsored group plans are expensive with huge year-over-year increases, much of this is borne by the employer. (I recently heard it could be up to 18% this year alone.) The current model is also precarious for employees because your employer’s decisions regarding coverage directly impact your health options (e.g. your preferred doctor may be in one network not in another). This is a multi-trillion dollar problem that straddles employers with large increasing expenses and leaves employees helpless to make fundamental choices about their health. Clearly, this model is not sustainable for the US. The good news is that there is a path to lowering costs for employers and employees while also providing more choice and stability for employees, and Thatch is building a solution. Thatch was founded by Chris Ellis and Adam Stevenson with the goal of simplifying selecting and paying for employer-sponsored health insurance. I knew Adam from Stripe but I first spoke with the two together in late 2022 and was impressed then with their vision. Since then, I’ve worked closely with the incredible team at Thatch and am consistently impressed by their intelligence, focus on customers, ability to execute, optimism, and passion to find a solution to this problem that empowers employees while also benefiting the businesses they work at. Two years ago I could not have guessed that my next move would be into a startup focused on managing healthcare expenses but Chris, Adam, and the Thatch team have changed my mind. I have sought fantastic colleagues solving difficult problems... and this is Thatch. Importantly, this is a set of problems worth spending time to solve correctly, the time is right, and our solutions will positively impact many people’s lives. So, to the Thatch team, I say: Let’s goooo!

Let's talk about money...! When people ask me about trends that i think are exciting in health-tech, I often will say it's all these fin-tech folks moving into our space. So I teamed up with Chris Ellis on a piece about the intersection of the two industries. Historically, health care has been "icked out" by the flow of money, but now we're being forced to take a closer look as inflation continues to be a problem. For Second Opinion, Chris and I shared some examples of where we think companies will sprout up, and where we see pitfalls along the way. Thanks to Julie Yoo, Victor Echevarria Vince Cogan, amongst other experts, for contributing thoughts and ideas.

Join Thatch and Ambetter Health as we explore how to best prepare for insurance renewals and dive into all things ICHRA on August 27th at 1 pm ET! A quick preview of what we’ll cover: - Rising costs in the Group Market - Strength of the Individual Marketplace - How to evaluate and implement ICHRA Whether you're new to ICHRA or a seasoned expert, all are welcome! Space is limited, so secure your spot today. Save your spot for free here 👇 https://lnkd.in/dn-2mBjG #ICHRA #EmployeeBenefits #SmallGroupInsurance #OpenEnrollment

Hitting 50 full-time employees is a significant milestone for any business owner or startup founder. But did you know that this also brings new responsibilities under the Affordable Care Act (ACA)? Employers with more than 50 full-time equivalent employees in the prior calendar year need to keep the following in mind: 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗮 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁: Begin preparations before you reach 50 employees to make the transition smoother. Early planning can help you avoid last-minute scrambles and ensure a seamless shift to meet the new compliance guidelines. 𝗨𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗳𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗱𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗥𝘂𝗹𝗲𝘀: Familiarize yourself with the ACA’s minimum affordability standards for health coverage. This ensures that the health plans you offer meet federal requirements and protect you from potential penalties. 𝗥𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀: As you grow, you may need to update your health insurance options to meet new requirements. Consider offering an ICHRA to accommodate different employee needs and preferences. 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴: If you’re nearing 50 employees, align your benefits changes with the calendar year. This can simplify compliance and make it easier for employees to understand their options. 𝗦𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝗘𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘁 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽: Partner with benefits providers who specialize in these transitions. Experienced providers can guide you through the process, ensuring you meet all compliance requirements without unnecessary stress. At Thatch, we work closely with our customers as their companies grow. We ensure that they stay on top of changing compliance requirements. If you're close to reaching the 50 full-time employee mark and need support to re-think your health benefits strategy, let's chat!

Our friends at Finch just released this in depth whitepaper about the revolution in employer-sponsored benefits. They discuss the new trend toward personalization, affordability, and accessibility in employee benefits, making a case on how modern providers (like Thatch) are positioned to revolutionize the industry by leveraging new tech that affords greater efficiency. You can get access to the whitepaper here https://lnkd.in/grQway7Y