Insurers, private equity lead $75 million investment in Wayspring

Wayspring, a value-based care organization focused on substance use disorder, received $75 million in new funding from Valtrius, Centene and six other investors, the firm announced Tuesday.

The company, formerly known as axialHealthcare, began partnering with health plans in 2020 to take on full financial risk for their substance use disorder populations in specific geographic areas in exchange for shared savings. Wayspring will use the new investments to expand its full-risk medical home model for substance use disorder in Arizona, Tennessee, and states in the Mid-Atlantic and Midwest, CEO Carter Paine said.

Although Wayspring sees strong market demand for its offerings, the cash infusion was necessary for expansion because the company doesn’t charge health plans any money upfront and must cover the sizable costs of implementation, Paine said.

“We want to have the capital and backing to be able to do that,” Paine said. “It’s not like we’re going to need all that out of the gate. It pads our balance sheet for the next few years.”

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Wayspring decided to change its name because its business has evolved in the past several years. The company originally made a mark by analyzing physicians’ prescribing patterns for health plans. And while payers are still their clients, Wayspring is now providing care coordination and management to people with substance use disorder.

“We just didn’t want any confusion around what historically had been the legacy offering,” Paine said. “It was important for us to focus on the future with a new team and the new [substance use disorder] model.”

Private equity firm Welsh, Carson, Anderson, and Stowe’s new value-based care investment arm, Valtrius, led the new investment. Centene, CareSource, HLM Venture Partners, Highmark Ventures, .406 Ventures, the Blue Venture Fund and Oak HC/FT also contributed funding.

“We are thrilled to back the Wayspring team to help solve the enormous issues confronting the SUD community,” Karey Witty, managing partner of Valtruis and an operating partner at Welsh, Carson, Anderson, and Stowe, said in a news release.