Grow Therapy Raises $15M to Empower Therapists

Behavioral Health Access and Grow Therapy's Mission

For Jake Cooper, co-founder and CEO of Grow Therapy, behavioral health is deeply personal as well as a professional pursuit. He has personally managed ADHD since childhood.

Early in his journey, Cooper received care from a psychiatrist, with his parents covering the $300 per session cost. However, locating an in-network clinician proved challenging. While his family could manage the expenses, he acknowledges that such care remains inaccessible to many Americans.

Addressing the Affordability Gap

Driven by a commitment to broaden access to affordable, in-network therapy, Cooper partnered with Manoj Kanagaraj and Alan Ni – colleagues from his college years – to establish Grow Therapy. Ni previously held a product management role at both Stripe and Google.

Grow Therapy is a behavioral health startup designed to empower therapists to launch and sustain their own insurance-covered private practices.

Series A Funding and Growth

The New York-based company recently announced a $15 million Series A funding round, spearheaded by SignalFire. This brings the total funding secured since its founding in October 2020 to $16.6 million.

Cooper shared with TechCrunch that the majority – 85% – of their providers are establishing independent practices for the first time, despite possessing an average of over 10 years of clinical experience.

These therapists often transition from community settings and other clinical roles, seeking the autonomy of their own practice.

The Challenge of Insurance Acceptance

A significant hurdle for therapists is insurance acceptance. Approximately 70% do not accept insurance due to the substantial administrative workload associated with claims processing.

Compounding this issue, over 30% of American adults now report experiencing symptoms of anxiety and/or depression, a notable increase from the 11% reported before the global pandemic.

Grow Therapy's Solution

Grow Therapy alleviates the burden of insurance acceptance by functioning as a centralized technology and support team. They provide the necessary resources for therapists to operate within insurance networks.

A key differentiator is the company’s existing partnerships with all major insurance payers, according to Cooper.

Grow Therapy positions itself at the intersection of payers, providers, and clients.

Operating within the Grow Therapy network reduces the average visit cost to under $40, with many visits fully covered by insurance. Therapists also have the option to offer a sliding scale for self-pay clients.

The company generates revenue through payments received from insurance companies for each provider visit.

Prioritizing Accessibility

“Our priority is ensuring access to care,” Cooper emphasized. “Receiving payment from payers is not merely a benefit, but a necessity. Focusing solely on out-of-pocket payments would exclude 90% of the American population.”

He explained that securing additional capital and partnering with an experienced firm were crucial for expanding the company’s reach.

SignalFire Partnership

This led to a partnership with SignalFire and venture partner Wayne Hu, who will be joining the board. The connection between Cooper and Hu was facilitated by a mutual colleague.

Hu believes Grow Therapy’s approach represents the “holy grail” for balancing supply and demand in the behavioral health space.

The company is actively expanding the pool of therapists seeking to establish practices while simultaneously freeing them from administrative tasks like scheduling and paperwork.

Vertically Integrated Services

Hu also highlighted the value of the company’s vertically integrated service model, enabling therapists to accept insurance for the first time.

“This integration positions them as the central hub for care,” Hu added. “They maintain comprehensive patient notes and can leverage infrastructure data to benefit all stakeholders involved in the patient’s care.”