NuvoAir – the digital health company on a mission to improve the lives of millions of people suffering from respiratory conditions – has raised $12 million to bring its chronic disease management and clinical trial platforms to even more patients and providers.
The Series A funding round was led by AlbionVC, a VC with more than 20 years’ experience investing in technology and healthcare, and comes off the back of a record 500% growth for NuvoAir in the first quarter of 2021. KAYA (formerly Enern), Amino Collective and existing shareholders Spiltan, Industrifonden and Novartis Pharma AG (dRx Capital) also took part.
Respiratory conditions create a massive burden for healthcare systems. Over 500 million people globally suffer from chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma, cystic fibrosis, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and over $300 billion is spent every year on managing these conditions.
NuvoAir helps improve the patient experience and level of care – the company has a Net Promoter Score score of 75 compared to the healthcare average of 38 – while relieving the time and cost burden by providing clinically validated technology for use in people’s homes. Studies have found that NuvoAir reduces urgent hospital visits by more than 39% and the company has a 95% retention rate on its platform.
NuvoAir combines a patient app with connected devices, self-management content, care coordination services, and a provider portal to support members. The platform’s technologies include a Bluetooth-enabled spirometer to remotely monitor lung function; a sensor that attaches to asthma and COPD inhalers; and Fitbit integration – all which feed data into the firm’s advanced chronic disease management platform. The latest addition to this platform is NuvoAir Cough, released last month, which assesses changes in nighttime coughing.
Real-time, high-touch monitoring and care
From this platform, healthcare providers and patients can monitor clinically relevant data, identify important changes in health and behavior in real time, get data-driven insights into the effectiveness of medication, and help patients better manage their condition themselves. NuvoAir Care Coordinators, serving all 50 U.S. states, provide high-touch services to further support patients with complex needs in coordination with their healthcare teams.
In addition to the patient and provider benefits afforded by the NuvoAir platform, its technology has played a vital role in more than 30 clinical trials, allowing patients suffering from COPD, asthma, cystic fibrosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) to gather and share data remotely with researchers.
To date, NuvoAir has partnered with providers across the U.S., U.K. and Europe, including Harvard Boston Children’s Hospital, New Hampshire’s Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Royal Brompton Hospital, King’s College Hospital in London, as well as pharmaceutical giants Roche, Regeneron and Novartis. NuvoAir has carried out clinical trials in over 20 countries and is trusted by thousands of physicians.
Covid fuels a seismic shift towards digital health
The recent, record-breaking growth seen on the NuvoAir platform is, in part, down to the demand for remote treatment and trials in the wake of Covid-19. With many health systems and pharmaceutical companies forced to move away from face-to-face interactions, providers have relied on NuvoAir to remotely care for and study patients. This is a trend that is set to continue as more hospitals and patients further embrace technology that supports data-driven decisions for improved management of respiratory conditions and the reduction of hospital admissions and emergency care.
Demand for remote clinical trials, in particular, had already grown ten-fold over the past three years and was accelerated when Covid-19 halted the use of traditional, in-person models. Enabling patients to collect data from home allows frequent data collection and reduces the burden for patients and study sites to participate.
Expansion, development and clinical trials
The funding will be used to accelerate the expansion of the NuvoAir digital care platform in the U.S. and Europe; advance the development of new products and services; and support NuvoAir’s partner and customer base for decentralized clinical trials around the world.
Concurrent with the financing, Gary Kurtzman, MD, has been appointed as NuvoAir’s Chairman of the Board to support this strategic direction and U.S. expansion. Dr. Kurtzman has served on the boards of several healthcare companies including Propeller Health, a medicine adherence tech company working in respiratory health that was acquired by ResMed.
“We are very pleased to receive the support and deep insight of AlbionVC,” said Lorenzo Consoli, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of NuvoAir. “The growing demand for our solution and the possibility to serve more patients in need, drives and motivates our entire team. Thanks to this financing round, we will be able to further expand our technology, data science, and clinical service capabilities to empower more people with chronic conditions to live a better life.”
“We’re proud to be able to support NuvoAir, one of the few digital health companies active in both Europe and the U.S.,” said Dr. Christoph Ruedig, Partner at AlbionVC. “The company has built an impressive respiratory disease management ecosystem with strong clinical evidence and a scalable care model that benefits patients, payers and providers.”
“The next stage in the evolution of digital health is creating effective and scalable solutions to improve the lives of patients with complex medical conditions,” said Dr. Kurtzman. “I am excited to be a part of this mission.”
Published clinical evidence and peer-reviewed studies demonstrating NuvoAir’s clinical impact, technological validity, and high patient satisfaction can be found on NuvoAir’s website.