Leerink rakes in $313 million for its health IT growth equity fund

The fund has already made investments in six companies: Outcome Health, Scientist.com, Vera Whole Health, PatientPing, Health Catalyst and Kyruus.
By Bernie Monegain
12:17 PM

Led by co-founders and managing partners Todd Cozzens and Jared Kesselheim, MD, Leerink Transformation Partners has raised $313 million for its inaugural equity fund, which is dedicated solely to ventures in healthcare IT and services.

Both men are veteran investors – Cozzens at Sequoia Capital and Kesselheim at Bain Capital Ventures.

Both believe the healthcare industry is ripe for this kind of dedicated fund and should find ample opportunities to invest. The fund has already made investments in six companies: Outcome Health, Scientist.com, Vera Whole Health, PatientPing, Health Catalyst, and Kyruus.

[Also: Running list: 2017 health IT mergers and acquisitions ]

At Sequoia Capital Cozzens invested in and helped build companies including Health Catalyst, MedExpress, which sold to UnitedHealth Group for $1.5B. He also ushered Natera, to its 2015 IPO and saw ZirMed, through its sale to Bain Capital for $750 million.

The founders bill LTF I as one of the largest funds ever raised solely dedicated to healthcare IT and services growth equity investing. LTP interests lie in disruptive and innovative revenue-stage healthcare information technology and services companies, they say.

Cozzens joined LTP from Sequoia Capital after a 25-year career as a founder and CEO in the healthcare technology and services industry, taking Marquette Medical public and later selling it to GE. Picis was acquired by UnitedHealth Group where Cozzens helped form Optum.

[Also: Health IT startups to watch: A running list ]

Kesselheim, an internal medicine doctor, with a Harvard MBA, trained at Massachusetts General Hospital. He joined LTP after an eight-year career at Bain Capital Ventures, most recently leading its healthcare investing team.

The co-founders have the backing of Jay Namyet, chief investment officer at University of Oregon Foundation and a Leerink investor.

“We built a fund entirely focused on healthcare IT and services because of two key transformative tailwinds: the rapid adoption of information technology and the $3 trillion reimbursement shift underway from fee-for-service medicine toward value-based care,” Kesselheim, said in a statement. “These drivers have created an unprecedented opportunity for disruption in a massive market whose complexity is best addressed by a fund with 100 percent sector focus.”

Twitter: @Bernie_HITN
Email the writer: bernie.monegain@himssmedia.com

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