The California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) today announced a $700,000 investment in Quartet to enable expanded care access for area patients with chronic physical and mental health issues. Additionally, this investment will enhance the recently commenced relationship between Quartet and Sutter Health, a leading nonprofit health care system in Northern California, by bolstering the rollout of Quartet’s digital care coordination platform to Sutter’s patients in the Sacramento area, including Medi-Cal members.

More than 42 million adults in the US have both a chronic physical condition and an accompanying mental health diagnosis. Yet those two health issues are typically treated in separate, siloed systems that are difficult for patients to navigate and often result in fragmented care delivery. In addition, mental health issues often go untreated or undertreated in patients who have physical health conditions. This lack of treatment costs almost $300 billion annually in excess and partially avoidable health care spending because patients may not receive mental health care until they are in crisis. This challenge disproportionately affects Medicaid, whose enrollees are more than twice as likely as the general population to have a mental illness.

“Since mental health conditions are frequently diagnosed by primary care providers, it is critical to equip them with the resources to connect patients to the right care at the right time. We believe Quartet’s technology makes this possible by saving time and money, both of which are at a premium in the safety net,” said Melissa Buckley, director of the CHCF Innovation Fund.

Quartet leverages technology to scale the integration of mental and physical health care. Specifically, the company enables electronic patient referral, tailored evidence-based and machine learning care interventions, and collaboration among patients’ care providers on its digital care coordination platform, supported by a centralized operations team that assists patients as they navigate referral and care.

“Millions of people are dealing with chronic physical and mental health issues and this is a big issue that impacts us all. CHCF, a leading and admired organization, recognizes that and has become a champion for the power of Quartet’s model and our work with Sutter to make a real difference in the lives of Californians,” said Arun Gupta, founder and CEO of Quartet.

Sutter Health and Quartet announced their collaboration to advance physical and mental health care in Northern California in August 2017. The investment by CHCF will help grow the number of Sacramento-area Sutter physicians and specialists using the Quartet platform and improve the total health of patients in need.

“Quartet is helping coordinate mental health care needs for Sutter Medical Group’s 300,000 primary care patients in the greater Sacramento area, including Medi-Cal members,” said John Boyd, Sutter Health CEO for Mental Health Services and chair of California’s Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission. “This invaluable investment from CHCF adds momentum to our movement where we treat the body and mind in tandem, creating healthier, fuller lives for those in our communities.”

During the last three years, Quartet has developed a successful track record of scaling its platform across major health plans and health systems in five markets: Sacramento, Pittsburgh, New Orleans, Boston, and Seattle.

 

 

About Quartet

Quartet is a pioneering technology company connecting physical and mental care to improve people’s health and quality of life. We are building a collaborative technology platform that brings together physicians, mental health providers, and insurance companies to effectively improve patient outcomes and drive down health care costs. Our data-driven platform identifies high-need patients and facilitates access to personalized care. Backed by $47MM in venture funding from top investors like GV (formerly Google Ventures) and Oak HC/FT, Quartet is headquartered in New York City and is currently operating in several markets across the US — Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Louisiana, Washington, and Northern California.

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About the California Health Care Foundation