Google parent-backed health insurance start-up eyes massive IPO

Oscar Health, the health insurance start-up backed by Google parent Alphabet Inc., is on course to raise up to $1.05 billion in its initial public offering (IPO), with individual shares expected to be priced between $32 and $34, according to regulatory filings on Monday.

As reported by Reuters, the New York-based company could be looking at a $6.7 billion IPO valuation at the upper end of the pricing range. Oscar Health was founded in 2012 by current chief executive officer Mario Schlosser, Josh Kushner - brother of Jared Kushner, son-in-law and senior adviser to former US President Donald Trump, and Kevin Nazemi, who is no longer a part of the company.

The technology-driven health insurer, which serves 529,000 members, enables patients to schedule physician visits, check lab results, make emergency virtual appointments and refill prescriptions through its mobile app or online platform.

It originally focused on selling insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act. Through the COVID-19 pandemic, Oscar Health has upped its game in the virtual health space, offering 24-hour-a-day telemedicine services for no extra fees. According to Bloomberg, the start-up said more than 30% of its members have used telemedicine, outpacing the 10% usage rate across the US.

Oscar Health’s IPO follows two successful funding rounds in 2020. As reported by Bloomberg, the firm raised $140 million in December through a funding round led by Tiger Global Management. In June last year, the health insurer raised $225 million in a funding round that included Thrive Capital.

The Alphabet-backed firm is undoubtedly hoping to achieve the same public markets success of Lemonade Inc. a fellow venture-backed insurer, whose shared have gained 273% since its IPO in July 2020.

Source: Insurance Business America