Skip to main content
Sister Publication Links
  • ESG: THE IMPLEMENTATION IMPERATIVE
Subscribe
  • Sign Up Free
  • Login
  • Subscribe
  • News
    • Current News
    • Providers
    • Insurance
    • Digital Health
    • Government
    • Finance
    • Technology
    • Safety & Quality
    • Transformation
    • People
    • Regional News
    • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Patients
    • Operations
    • Care Delivery
    • Payment
    • Midwest
    • Northeast
    • South
    • West
  • Unwell in America
  • Opinion
    • Bold Moves
    • Breaking Bias
    • Commentaries
    • Letters
    • Vital Signs Blog
    • From the Editor
  • Events & Awards
    • Awards
    • Conferences
    • Galas
    • Virtual Briefings
    • Webinars
    • Nominate/Eligibility
    • 100 Most Influential People
    • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
    • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
    • Excellence in Governance
    • Health Care Hall of Fame
    • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
    • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
    • Top 25 Innovators
    • Diversity in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
      • - Leaders to Watch
    • Women in Healthcare
      • - Luminaries
      • - Top 25 Women Leaders
      • - Women to Watch
    • Digital Health Transformation Summit
    • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
    • Leadership Symposium
    • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
    • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
    • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
    • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
    • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
    • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
    • - Hospital of the Future
    • - Value Based Care
    • - Hospital at Home
    • - Workplace of the Future
    • - Digital Health
    • - Future of Staffing
    • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
  • Multimedia
    • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
    • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
    • Video Series - The Check Up
    • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
  • Data Center
    • Data Center Home
    • Hospital Financials
    • Staffing & Compensation
    • Quality & Safety
    • Mergers & Acquisitions
    • Data Archive
    • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
    • Surveys
    • Data Points
  • MORE+
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise
    • Media Kit
    • Newsletters
    • Jobs
    • People on the Move
    • Reprints & Licensing
MENU
Breadcrumb
  1. Home
  2. Finance
January 29, 2018 12:00 AM

Venture firm: Health system investing better in numbers

Tara Bannow
  • Tweet
  • Share
  • Share
  • Email
  • More
    Reprints Print

    McLaren Health Care's chief financial officer always asks himself the same question before throwing his system's money into a healthcare venture: Is this something we'd use?

    "Why do you want to invest in a company with products that you have no desire to ever want to use?" Dave Mazurkiewicz said.

    In that spirit, Mazurkiewicz is giving McLaren's support—in the form of an undisclosed financial investment—to a healthcare venture platform that won't necessarily call upon outside experts to vet potential ideas. Rather, it'll call upon its own investors—mostly health systems, but also insurers and healthcare vendors—to learn about what works in the industry.

    LRVHealth planned to announce Monday it seeks to raise $100 million in venture capital that will go toward early-stage digital health, medical devices and diagnostics companies—whatever ideas its investors think show promise in fixing some of healthcare's most pressuring challenges.

    Keith Figlioli, a general partner with LRVHealth and a leader on the new project, declined to say how much LRVHealth has raised so far, but said it's "a good amount" toward the $100 million goal, which the group plans to hit by early fall.

    So far, eight health systems have signed on as investors, all undisclosed other than McLaren, a 12-hospital system based in Grand Blanc, Mich., which he said is one of the fund's largest investors. McLaren reported $3.7 billion in net revenue in fiscal 2016.

    LRVHealth is actively marketing the fund to other potential investors, and Figlioli said he hopes to get 10 to 12 health systems, two to three insurers, and two to three healthcare vendors.

    Another big player in the new fund is the Innovation Institute, a for-profit company owned by six not-for-profit health systems: Avera Health, Sioux Falls, S.D.; Bon Secours Health System, Marriottsville, Md.; Children's Hospital of Orange County, Orange, Calif.; Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System, Baton Rouge, La.; Mercy Health, Cincinnati; and Providence St. Joseph Health, Renton, Wash. The institute was looking for a partner for its new venture platform and decided on LRVHealth.

    Innovation Institute CEO Joe Randolph said he likes that LRVHealth will make his company an "insider" in the decisionmaking process and would give his health system owners the chance to be early adopters of the concepts or products that are funded.

    "It's kind of like the providers, the ones that are in the industry, are the ones that are evaluating and making the decisions," he said, "versus a financial type that's looking at it just from an outsider's perspective."

    At its core, the approach is about health systems, Figlioli said. They'll serve as "test beds" for new ideas both to determine whether a company would be a good investment and, once investments are made, to use the products or services. So far, the systems involved have 148 hospitals.

    McLaren already invests in fixed income funds and private equity funds, but Mazurkiewicz said that's far from the system's main function. That's why he sees benefit in joining up with LRVHealth, which is operated and supported by experts in the field.

    "Our core business is providing healthcare, so we try to stay within our correct swim lane, but we do invest in various funds," he said.

    With LRVHealth, Mazurkiewicz said he'll get the expertise of the other health systems involved, as well as the fund's leadership team and advisers. The advisers include Dr. Glenn Steele, former CEO of Geisinger Health System, and Terry Linn, former senior vice president of corporate development and strategy at Premier.

    This is LRVHealth's fourth investment fund. Since its launch in 2000 the firm, formerly known as Long River Ventures, has funded companies like GetWellNetwork and MedVentive.

    "We could potentially look at early stage businesses that multiple health systems can incubate together rather than having one health system do it at a time," Figlioli said.

    Letter
    to the
    Editor

    Send us a letter

    Have an opinion about this story? Click here to submit a Letter to the Editor, and we may publish it in print.

    Recommended for You
    sutter_i.jpg
    Sutter Health lost $249M in 2022 in reversal of fortune
    money arrows decrease down 2
    Bon Secours Mercy Health's 2022 losses exceed $1 billion
    Most Popular
    1
    More healthcare organizations at risk of credit default, Moody's says
    2
    Centene fills out senior executive team with new president, COO
    3
    SCAN, CareOregon plan to merge into the HealthRight Group
    4
    Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan unveils big push that lets physicians take on risk, reap rewards
    5
    Bright Health weighs reverse stock split as delisting looms
    Sponsored Content
    Daily Finance Newsletter: Sign up to receive daily news and data that has a direct impact on the business and financing of healthcare.
    Get Newsletters

    Sign up for enewsletters and alerts to receive breaking news and in-depth coverage of healthcare events and trends, as they happen, right to your inbox.

    Subscribe Today
    MH Magazine Cover

    MH magazine offers content that sheds light on healthcare leaders’ complex choices and touch points—from strategy, governance, leadership development and finance to operations, clinical care, and marketing.

    Subscribe
    Connect with Us
    • LinkedIn
    • Twitter
    • Facebook
    • RSS

    Our Mission

    Modern Healthcare empowers industry leaders to succeed by providing unbiased reporting of the news, insights, analysis and data.

    Contact Us

    (877) 812-1581

    Email us

     

    Resources
    • Contact Us
    • Advertise with Us
    • Ad Choices Ad Choices
    • Sitemap
    Editorial Dept
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Code of Ethics
    • Awards
    • About Us
    Legal
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • Privacy Request
    Modern Healthcare
    Copyright © 1996-2023. Crain Communications, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
    • News
      • Current News
      • Providers
      • Insurance
      • Digital Health
      • Government
      • Finance
      • Technology
      • Safety & Quality
      • Transformation
        • Patients
        • Operations
        • Care Delivery
        • Payment
      • People
      • Regional News
        • Midwest
        • Northeast
        • South
        • West
      • Digital Edition (Web Version)
    • Unwell in America
    • Opinion
      • Bold Moves
      • Breaking Bias
      • Commentaries
      • Letters
      • Vital Signs Blog
      • From the Editor
    • Events & Awards
      • Awards
        • Nominate/Eligibility
        • 100 Most Influential People
        • 50 Most Influential Clinical Executives
        • Best Places to Work in Healthcare
        • Excellence in Governance
        • Health Care Hall of Fame
        • Healthcare Marketing Impact Awards
        • Top 25 Emerging Leaders
        • Top 25 Innovators
        • Diversity in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Diversity Leaders
          • - Leaders to Watch
        • Women in Healthcare
          • - Luminaries
          • - Top 25 Women Leaders
          • - Women to Watch
      • Conferences
        • Digital Health Transformation Summit
        • ESG: The Implementation Imperative Summit
        • Leadership Symposium
        • Social Determinants of Health Symposium
        • Women Leaders in Healthcare Conference
      • Galas
        • Best Places to Work Awards Gala
        • Health Care Hall of Fame Gala
        • Top 25 Diversity Leaders Gala
        • Top 25 Women Leaders Gala
      • Virtual Briefings
        • - Hospital of the Future
        • - Value Based Care
        • - Hospital at Home
        • - Workplace of the Future
        • - Digital Health
        • - Future of Staffing
        • - Hospital of the Future (Fall)
      • Webinars
    • Multimedia
      • Podcast - Beyond the Byline
      • Sponsored Podcast - Healthcare Insider
      • Video Series - The Check Up
      • Sponsored Video Series - One on One
    • Data Center
      • Data Center Home
      • Hospital Financials
      • Staffing & Compensation
      • Quality & Safety
      • Mergers & Acquisitions
      • Data Archive
      • Resource Guide: By the Numbers
      • Surveys
      • Data Points
    • MORE+
      • Contact Us
      • Advertise
      • Media Kit
      • Newsletters
      • Jobs
      • People on the Move
      • Reprints & Licensing