Poland-based Telemedico has successfully completed a €5.5 million (~$6.6 million) Series A funding round. This investment was spearheaded by Flashpoint Venture Capital, Uniqa Ventures, PKO VC, Black Pearls VC (as a returning investor), and Adamed.

Telehealth solutions, and the wider digital health sector, have experienced significant expansion in recent years, particularly as the need for remote medical advice and various support services increased, driving growth within the industry.

Established in 2014, Telemedico transitioned to its current business-to-business (B2B) model – primarily serving insurance companies – in 2017. The company reports that 2020 represented a peak year for its operations.

During the past year, the platform facilitated one million patient consultations, according to company data.

Pawel Sieczkiewicz, founder and CEO of Telemedico, states that the platform currently handles over 100,000 consultations each month, with projections indicating an increase to 250,000 by the close of 2021.

To date, more than 900,000 patients have utilized the platform, and a network of over 600 doctors currently deliver remote consultations through Telemedico.

The platform’s capabilities encompass doctor consultations through chat, video, or phone; AI-poweredassessment and coordination; and the scheduling of in-person appointments and laboratory tests.

According to Sieczkiewicz, the company has achieved year-over-year growth of 300% since 2018, completing over 2.5 million appointments in total, offered in 10 different languages.

The company anticipates doubling its current workforce of 60 employees in the coming year.

Expanding the range of supported languages is also a key component of this plan. (The platform currently supports consultations in English, Spanish, Polish, Czech, Russian, Ukrainian, Serbian, Portuguese, Turkish and Arabic, with planned additions including Italian, French, Greek, German and Romanian.)

Telemedico’s strongest markets currently are Poland and Spain, as indicated by Sieczkiewicz, who also notes the company operates in a total of 14 markets.

“Our strategy involves strengthening our position in existing markets – Spain, Russia, Portugal, Turkey – and expanding into new territories, incorporating new languages, particularly within the European Union, such as France, Germany, Greece, Italy and Romania,” he explains.

In a competitive telehealth landscape, Telemedico positions itself as a unique “plug and play” platform for insurance companies, providing a white-label service tailored to a sector that Sieczkiewicz believes may prefer to maintain greater control compared to more prominent, brand-focused “digital first” competitors.

“We offer our enterprise clients a platform they can customize to their specific requirements, along with a network of over 600 doctors proficient in 10 languages, which they can integrate with their existing network,” he stated to TechCrunch. “We assist our clients in enhancing their value proposition, enabling them to compete effectively with emerging digital-first insurance companies.”

“The leading competitors include Babylon Health, KRY and Pushdoctor. These companies adopt a B2C approach with a strong local presence and are actively building brand recognition, potentially directing insurance company customers away from their existing ecosystems. Based on feedback from insurance companies, this is not their preferred method of managing patient care.”

“A potential disadvantage for insurers utilizing a setup like Babylon’s is the possibility of Babylon eventually offering insurance coverage directly to consumers, potentially bypassing the original insurance companies – a similar model to that of digital-first insurers like Oscar Health,” he adds.

Telemedico states its system can be implemented in approximately 48 hours, allowing insurance companies and other enterprise clients to offer a telehealth platform that provides their users with access to branded web and mobile patient portals; online consultations; secure medical document storage; in-person visit scheduling; automated assessment; and symptom checking tools.

The company also provides insurance companies with an “insurance product creator” to manage different versions of their existing product offerings for specific user groups.

Telemedico reports that its platform is utilized by “a number” of health ministries globally, as well as by companies such as PZU, Allianz, AXA, Metrored, Compensa, TU Zdrowie and over 50 other insurance and medical assistance providers (“primarily” within the telemedicine sector).

The company also offers a direct-to-consumer telehealth service in Poland, integrated with the public healthcare system, where consultation fees are covered by the National Health Fund of Poland (making it free at the point of service for patients).

It also provides consultations on a fee-for-service basis. Sieczkiewicz emphasizes the company’s unique selling proposition as being “built on three core principles: B2B focus, white-label solutions, and cross-country services.”

“Telemedico is fundamentally a B2B company,” he continues. “The majority of our revenue comes from recurring enterprise clients, including insurance companies, banks, pharmacies, and other organizations that either aim to improve existing health services with digital integration or wish to introduce new health services to their offerings.”

“We are witnessing a growing trend among insurance companies to incorporate new healthcare products into their portfolios. We facilitate this process with our ‘insurance product creator,’ providing them with tools for setting up and managing their digital health services, patient workflows, and more.”

He also highlights that the “plug and play” SaaS platform supports a modular approach, allowing B2B users to focus on the most relevant features for their specific needs, whether it be telemedicine, medication ordering, or automated triage.

The software can be fully integrated into a client’s existing platform or operate as a standalone solution.

“Telemedicine is increasingly becoming a primary access point to medical services, rather than simply an addition to insurance packages – a means of enhancing patient satisfaction and reducing costs for insurers,” Sieczkiewicz suggests.

Michael Szalontay, general partner at Flashpoint VC, stated in a press release: “We are confident that telemedicine will become the dominant channel for medical service delivery in the coming decade, and Telemedico is well-positioned to become a leading European provider in this field. We are pleased to partner with Pawel and support Telemedico’s growth.”

“This decade will be a period of significant growth for telemedicine,” added Dr. Andreas Nemeth, general partner at UNIQA Ventures, in a supporting statement. “The potential is substantial, and telemedi.co is already setting industry standards. telemedi.co possesses the right product, team, and culture to assist insurers in delivering seamless telemedicine services. We are delighted to collaborate on this international expansion journey.”