Nym Health Raises $16.5M for AI-Powered Hospital Billing
Just under two years following its initial seed funding round, Nym Health, a company based in Israel, has secured an additional $16.5 million in funding to facilitate the deployment of its technology. This technology focuses on creating verifiable machine learning tools designed to automate the process of hospital billing.
This latest round of investment was provided by a group of investors that includes GV, formerly known as Google Ventures and the venture capital arm of Google. The company intends to utilize these funds to broaden its technological development and amplify its sales and marketing initiatives throughout the United States.
Healthcare systems within the U.S. have consistently faced significant challenges with billing, largely due to the complex coding procedures required to ensure appropriate reimbursement from insurance companies for the care delivered by medical professionals.
Nym asserts it has resolved this issue through the development of technologies capable of automatically converting medical records and documentation from physician consultations into accurate billing codes. According to Nym, the company employs natural language processing and specialized taxonomies crafted to interpret clinical terminology, thereby identifying the appropriate charges for each patient procedure, examination, and diagnostic test.
The company was established in 2018 by Adam Rimon and Amihai Neiderman, both former members of the 8200 cybersecurity unit of the Israeli army. The two sought a collaborative project, with Neiderman specifically interested in applying natural language processing to the medical field. Rimon had recently completed a doctoral degree in computational linguistics, making the transition to medical charting and coding a logical step.
“Our methodology allows us to produce comprehensive audit trails,” explained Neiderman. “We can clearly demonstrate how we interpreted all information within patient charts.”
The presence of automated, yet auditable, processes is crucial for healthcare providers, enabling them to provide justification to insurance companies for the services they have rendered.
While Nym’s software cannot detect fraudulent billing practices where physicians intentionally overcharge for services not provided, it can offer an audit trail and rationale for the services a hospital has billed for—and potentially recover revenue lost due to inaccurate coding. “We do not interfere with medical decision-making. We operate under the assumption that physicians are dedicated to providing the best possible care and adhering to established protocols,” stated Neiderman.
Venture investors are showing considerable interest in the development of improved healthcare billing systems, given that coding-related payment denials can result in losses of $15 billion for hospitals, as reported by Nym. This service has attracted attention from not only GV, but also Bessemer Venture Partners, Dynamic Loop Capital, Lightspeed, Tiger Global, and angel investors including Zach Weinberg and Nat Turner from Flatiron Health.
“Inaccurate coding negatively impacts all parties involved,” commented Ben Robbins, a venture partner at GV.
Nym’s pricing structure ranges from $1 to $4 per chart analyzed, and the company is currently collaborating with approximately 40 healthcare providers across the U.S., as stated by the company.