MDLive recently closed a $50 million financing round, the Sunrise, Fla.-based telehealth company confirmed Aug. 1.
Health Velocity Capital, a healthcare venture capital firm and experienced telehealth investor, led the funding effort. Cigna and Health Care Service Corp., an independent licensee of Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association plans in five states, also participated.
These new firms joined MDLive's existing roster of healthcare investors, including Norfolk, Va.-based Sentara Healthcare and Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health.
MDLive said it will use the new funds to expand its virtual care platform. Today, the company connects more than 27 million Americans to physicians, counselors, psychiatrists and dermatologists through its cloud-based telehealth platform.
Cigna, which has an existing partnership with MDLive to provide its customers with access to virtual visits, reported a 17 percent decrease in total medical costs and a 36 percent decrease in visits to emergency departments for that same population since offering the company's services.
"Choice, personalization and affordability are critical to improving the U.S. healthcare system," Tom Richards, global leader for strategy and business development at Cigna, said in MDLive's news release. "Telehealth impacts all three of these factors and we are continuing to invest in MDLive as a proven leader in the space."