In the wake of rising concerns over the mental health crisis among children and adolescents, a new technology-driven behavioral health startup, Emilio Health, has raised $5 million in seed funding to help improve access to care. This round of funding, led by Oak HC/FT, will enable Emilio Health to open its first clinics, launch its digital platform, and expand its leadership team. The company’s goal is clear: to transform the way behavioral health services are delivered to young people by integrating both in-person treatment and digital tools for enhanced care coordination.
Founded in October of 2020, Emilio Health is based in Palo Alto, California, and aims to tackle the many challenges in the behavioral health system for children. This includes improving accessibility, reducing fragmentation in care, and promoting greater coordination between various stakeholders—such as parents, pediatricians, and school counselors. In an industry long characterized by limited access and siloed care, Emilio Health offers a fresh and innovative approach designed to create more seamless and efficient behavioral health services.
The State of Behavioral Health for Children in the U.S.
Before we delve into the specific features of Emilio Health’s model, it’s essential to understand the problem it seeks to solve. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 20% of children in the United States have a diagnosable behavioral health condition. Yet, only about 20% of those children actually receive the necessary treatment. The discrepancy between the need for care and the access to care is a significant challenge, and it has major consequences for children’s well-being.
Every year, the United States spends an estimated $8.9 billion on children’s mental health care, according to the Journal of Pediatrics. Despite this significant expenditure, the behavioral health system for children remains deeply fragmented, with long wait times for appointments, inconsistent treatment quality, and a lack of coordination between various health providers. As a result, many children fail to receive the comprehensive care they need, which leads to poorer health outcomes, higher costs, and, in some cases, worsening behavioral health conditions.
Emilio Health’s approach is designed to combat these issues by creating an integrated model of care that uses both in-person clinical support and a digital platform for real-time tracking, scheduling, and communication.
Emilio Health’s Innovative Approach to Behavioral Health Care
Emilio Health aims to bring behavioral health care into the 21st century by combining traditional outpatient treatment with cutting-edge technology. The company’s core mission is to provide accessible, high-quality, and coordinated care for children and adolescents dealing with behavioral health issues. Emilio Health recognizes that in today’s fast-paced world, relying solely on in-person visits may not be enough to address the needs of patients effectively. That’s where the digital platform comes in.
1. Combining Outpatient Care with Technology
The centerpiece of Emilio Health’s model is the integration of technology with outpatient care. While children and their families will have access to traditional in-person therapy and support, the digital platform will serve as a complement to this care. This platform will allow providers to track patients’ progress in real-time, schedule appointments seamlessly, and ensure that care is continuously monitored. In addition, the platform will offer digital tools for self-management, giving children and their families a sense of ownership and control over their treatment journey.
The digital aspect of Emilio Health’s model is essential for ensuring that care is not fragmented. Behavioral health providers, as well as pediatricians, school counselors, and parents, can all be kept in the loop about the child’s progress. This ongoing communication fosters collaboration, enabling caregivers and providers to coordinate care more effectively. When all involved parties are informed and engaged, children are more likely to have positive treatment outcomes.
2. Bridging the Gap Between Providers and Families
One of the critical issues with the current behavioral health system for children is the lack of collaboration between parents, caregivers, and various healthcare providers. Often, parents are left out of the loop when it comes to understanding the child’s treatment plan, progress, or challenges. Emilio Health’s digital platform directly addresses this gap by providing parents with access to real-time updates on their child’s care. Through the platform, parents can engage in ongoing conversations with care teams, track their child’s progress, and communicate with providers as needed.
By keeping everyone involved and on the same page, Emilio Health aims to create a more holistic approach to treatment, ensuring that children receive the right care at the right time. Parents, as the primary caregivers, play a vital role in their child’s behavioral health journey, and by enabling them to stay informed, Emilio Health ensures that families are empowered to make informed decisions.
3. Addressing the Fragmented Care System
The current behavioral health care system is often criticized for being fragmented, with children frequently receiving care from multiple providers in disconnected settings. This lack of integration can lead to poor communication, conflicting treatment plans, and a lack of coordination between different healthcare systems, all of which can hinder progress.
Emilio Health addresses this fragmentation by offering a coordinated, comprehensive approach to care. With the use of its digital platform, Emilio Health ensures that all care providers—whether therapists, pediatricians, or school counselors—have access to the same patient data, enabling them to collaborate and align treatment plans. This integrated approach fosters a more efficient and effective system of care, improving outcomes for children and adolescents with behavioral health needs.
Oak HC/FT’s Investment and the Future of Emilio Health
Emilio Health’s recent $5 million seed funding round was led by Oak HC/FT, a venture growth-equity fund known for investing in healthcare and financial services technology. With this investment, Emilio Health plans to open its first clinics, launch its digital platform, and continue to expand its leadership team. Annie Lamont, co-founder and managing partner at Oak HC/FT, will join Emilio Health’s board of directors, further strengthening the company’s leadership and providing strategic guidance as it grows.
Annie Lamont is optimistic about Emilio Health’s potential to disrupt the behavioral health space for children. She remarked, “The current system of care for behavioral health is deeply fragmented, with limited access, inconsistent quality, and insufficient coordination resulting in poor outcomes and high costs. By wrapping live clinical support with a digital experience, Emilio Health is reconstructing this broken system.”
The investment from Oak HC/FT is a significant vote of confidence in Emilio Health’s vision. With this capital, Emilio Health can implement its model across the country, ensuring that children and families have access to the resources they need to address behavioral health issues in a holistic, coordinated, and efficient way.
A Bright Future for Children’s Behavioral Health
Emilio Health’s mission to improve children’s behavioral health care is both timely and important. The behavioral health crisis among children is growing, and the need for effective solutions has never been greater. By combining outpatient treatment with technology, Emilio Health is not only making care more accessible but also more collaborative, ensuring that families and providers work together to improve outcomes for children.
As the company moves forward with its plans to open clinics and launch its digital platform, it will undoubtedly play a key role in transforming the behavioral health landscape. With the backing of Oak HC/FT and a strong leadership team in place, Emilio Health is poised to make a lasting impact on the way children’s behavioral health services are delivered in the U.S.
With its innovative approach, Emilio Health is redefining what’s possible in the field of behavioral health and offering hope for a future where every child can access the care they need to thrive.
