The California Health Care Foundation's CHCF Innovation Fund announced this week that it has invested a total of slightly more than $1 million in Madison, Wisconsin-based Asthmapolis, which offers a FDA-cleared inhaler sensor and app for people with asthma, COPD, or cystic fibrosis. CHCF has made two investments in Asthmapolis over the years but the bulk of the $1 million makes up its most recent one. The asthma management company just announced a $5 million round of funding led by The Social+Capital Partnership in April.
In April Asthmapolis told MobiHealthNews that it planned to use the funds to build new sensors that work with the variety of inhaled medications being prescribed today. It will also use the funds to accelerate plans to secure regulatory clearances in countries outside of the US, like Canada and the UK. The new money also will help it with marketing and to ensure that people all along the socioeconomic spectrum who are dealing with a condition like asthma have access to Asthmapolis.
The company’s device is a sensor that sits atop (most) inhalers used by patients who have asthma or COPD. The sensor transmits data to a companion app on the user’s mobile phone every time the inhaler is used. The app can then track the time and location of each medication discharge, which can then be used to help patients and their care givers better understand their asthma triggers. Asthmapolis has a partnership with Qualcomm Life to ensure that people without smartphones can use their inhaler sensors, too, by synching them to the 2net hub when they're at home.
In the past year Asthmapolis has inked deals with a variety of healthcare organizations including Dignity Health in California, Amerigroup in Florida, Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in New York, and public health and retail pharmacy initiatives in the City of Louisville.