Folx Raises $25M Series A, Launches Health Program For LGBTQIA+ Community

Folx Health secured $25 million in Series A financing to provide digital health care service designed for the LGBTQIA+ community. This follows its $4.4 million seed round announced in December.

Subscribe to the Crunchbase Daily

Folx founder and CEO A.G. Breitenstein, a self-identified nonbinary lesbian and health care industry veteran, started the company with the focus of tailoring health care experiences to the person instead of the basic model of diagnosis and treatment.

“We are taking the ease of e-commerce, with the trust and support of One Medical, and bringing it together to build deep and accessible health care for this community,” Breitenstein told Crunchbase News.

The company’s new offerings include Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT), with monthly plans starting at $59 a month. It will also begin releasing its sexual health and wellness offerings starting with erectile dysfunction treatment, followed by at-home STI testing and treatment, all customized for the specifics of queer and trans bodies, Breitenstein said.

In addition, most plans will include unlimited, on-demand clinical support with at-home lab testing and home-delivered medications. Folx is now available in 11 states and has built up a network of 12 doctors.

“There is a lot of confidence in telehealth and community-focused, direct-to-consumer platforms have proven successful,” Breitenstein said. “Unlike the typical health care gig trying to get product market fit, we have confidence in ours and assembled a brilliant team. Our Instagram went to 12,000 followers in the past two months, and community is going to be foundational.”

The round was led by Bessemer Venture Partners, which was joined by existing investors Define Ventures and Polaris Partners. Including the new round, Folx has raised $30 million in total.

The company intends to use the new funding to drive national expansion and quickly roll out new products and offerings in sexual health and family creation later in 2021 and early 2022, Breitenstein said.

“We have the clinical piece, the controlled medications, lab piece and a huge amount of education, but there is more depth to the platform to build,” she added.

In addition, the company is creating the Folx Library, a first-of-its-kind content hub to serve as a free resource for all things queer and trans health, such as addressing questions and concerns ranging from an overview of the expected physical changes with HRT to how to navigate the health system.

Morgan Cheatham, an investor at Bessemer Venture Partners, said in an interview that this is a historical moment, and that Folx is providing health care in a dignified, culturally-competent way to serve an unmet need and an underserved population.

“It’s challenging to articulate how transformative Folx is for our community,” Cheatham said. “Many people have to travel hundreds of miles to find LGBTQ-competent care. If someone is not living in a metropolitan area or has a provider who is familiar with caring for queer and trans people, Folx is extending that reach and expanding access to care.”

Illustration: Dom Guzman