Menopause is having a moment. Finally. An issue that 51% of the population is *guaranteed* to experience has been overlooked and ignored, until now.
During menopause, 85% of women experience symptoms like hot flashes, insomnia, headaches, brain fog, etc - but 73% of women don’t treat their symptoms at all, which can have longer term heart, bone density and cognitive health impact. What’s worse, of the 60%of women with significant menopausal symptoms who seek medical attention, nearly 3/4 of them are left untreated or are misdiagnosed and treated for depression/anxiety, not the root cause of their symptoms.
These shocking stats highlight that there’s a huge gap for female midlife healthcare. Enter Midi Health, OpCo PortCo that launched in October 2022 with $14M in seed funding to put specialized midlife healthcare within reach for more women than ever before. Pam Kostka, OpCo Operating Partner, sat down with Midi Health founder and CEO Joanna Strober to unpack why peri - and menopausal women’s needs are not being met, and how Midi is changing the status quo.
The Company
Midi is the only virtual midlife care platform for women 40-65. With care designed by world-class experts, Midi’s mission is to help women feel strong and healthy through perimenopause, menopause and much more. Like many successful companies, the idea for Midi was born from the personal lived experience of the founding team members to understand and seek medical attention for their mid-life health concerns. . .The result? Midi speciality visits and prescriptions (if needed) are covered by most PPO insurance plans and integrate with the entire benefits ecosystem to offer a fully reimbursed medical program in 6 states and counting.
Why You Should Pay Attention
The market is enormous, and woefully underserved. 51% of the population is female, and 100% of them will experience perimenopause or menopause. 20% of the American workforce experience menopause each year, and menopause-related productivity losses can amount to more than $150 billion a year globally. Employees with significant menopause symptoms have 45% higher medical costs and 50% higher pharmacy costs. Employers, the healthcare system, and most importantly, the women in midlife, all benefit from better healthcare. As menopause is a precursor to other aging related illnesses like heart disease, osteoporosis, and dementia, proactive treatment positively impacts healthspan and on-going cost of care.
OB-GYNs are the de facto experts in women’s health, but once women age out of the baby-delivering phase, OB-GYNs no longer serve them. Women revert back to general practitioners who have little, if any, training in perimenopause and menopause. In the vacuum, there’s a lot of misinformation about what works and what doesn’t work.
“We have an entire generation of physicians who have not been trained in taking care of women with perimenopause and menopause.” - Joanna Strober, Founder & CEO Midi Health
The opportunity to unseat the status quo and provide real care for women in midlife is long overdue.
The Details
Midi is predicated on science-backed protocols honed from the most sought after, global medical experts in perimenopause and menopause. They include hormonal and nonhormonal treatment options for a variety of symptoms. Every Midi healthcare provider is trained extensively on these protocols to ensure the highest quality of care.
As healthcare is a heavily regulated industry, it didn’t happen overnight. They secured their virtual care practice license and insurance contracts in several states to get started, and are building out more as time goes on - not just more geographies, but also more protocols that affect women in midlife like bone health and sexual health.
How it Works
- Book a virtual visit: set up an account, enter your insurance, share your symptoms, and choose a time to meet a clinician.
- Meet a Midi clinician: discuss your symptoms and health history in depth with a nurse practitioner trained in perimenopause and menopause.
- Get any necessary tests you need at a local lab: they’ll send you to a convenient local lab that accepts your insurance, the results of which personalize your treatment.
- Integrate Midi into your health routine: get all the virtual follow-ups you need to dial your treatment and take preventative steps. They’ll partner with your other doctors, and refer you for in-person treatment when needed.
Why We’re Obsessed
Midi is partnering with healthcare organizations and large hospital systems around the country to be their virtual menopause provider. This approach, coupled with robust insurance coverage, ensures they will be an enduring healthcare platform for aging women all over the country. A key discovery is that it serves women’s health beyond just perimenopause and menopause. 40% of the women coming to Midi have not had a doctor’s visit in 4 - 10 years and Midi’s vast network allows them to refer for medically recommended screenings from mammograms to colonoscopies. Plus, while other virtual care companies outsource their medical teams, Midi does it all in house to ensure the training, mentoring, and care delivery of their nurse practitioners is high quality. Midi’s top key success metric: ensuring women have a plan in place to get better after their first visit.
Get Involved
Prospective patients, medical providers, and insurance providers can get more information here. The Midi team is also ramping up hiring of HQ roles and remote nurse practitioners and OB-GYNs.
Watch Joanna and Pam’s interview below to learn more about Midi, the vision for better care in midlife, and how Midi’s platform is tackling this critical space.
