Labs: Employer-Sponsored Healthcare Innovation
August 28, 2025
10 AM PT / 1 PM ET
Virtual Event
The Benefits Shake-Up: Innovation and Opportunity in Employer-Sponsored Healthcare
The employer-sponsored healthcare market is undergoing a rapid seismic shift, driven by the explosive rise of Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRA) and novel funding mechanisms and benefit designs. The current group insurance model has left the industry at its breaking point. Insurance premiums are now exceeding $25,000 annually, rising 22% over the past five years.
Legacy insurers are repositioning. Oscar Health’s CEO has called for ICHRA to replace group plans; Centene has launched a dedicated division with plans priced 20% below market; and UnitedHealthcare is scaling back small group offerings. Humana and Cigna have exited the small group market entirely. This shift is creating major opportunities for startups to gain ground. Fortune 500 companies are now issuing ICHRA RFPs for tens of thousands of employees—one as large as 104,000 covered lives—signaling that ICHRA is moving from a small-business solution to a mainstream strategy for large enterprises.
For investors, ICHRA is more than a healthcare innovation—it’s an entry point to a $1.6 trillion market. It opens the door to investments in personalized health, AI-powered plan guidance, and integrated financial services. With 83% of adopters offering benefits for the first time and 29% annual growth, early-stage companies are building the infrastructure for a post-group-plan future. The transformation is already in motion—the question is who will capture the value as healthcare becomes portable, personalized, and technology-driven.
SpringTide Ventures has gathered the most innovative disruptors in Employee-First Healthcare from cutting-edge technology platforms and benefit design to insurance and benefit financing disruptors.
ICHRA Consultant:
Amanda Harlan, Sandbox Industries - Sandbox Industries is a strategic investment and advisory firm focused on healthcare and insurance. We manage funds backed by corporate limited partners—including health plans, health systems, and global insurers—and invest in innovative companies aligned with their strategic priorities. Amanda serves as Vice President of Sandbox Advisors, the firm’s advisory arm. Through our work with LPs and other large incumbents, we extend Sandbox’s value by providing strategy and applied innovation support to help navigate market disruption, launch new models, and overcome the incumbent’s dilemma—unlocking growth in a rapidly changing healthcare landscape.
ICHRA Tech Disruptor:
Stacy Edgar, Founder, CEO, Venteur - Venteur is building the health insurance system of the future — one that is more affordable, simple, portable, and, most importantly, gives individuals a greater voice in their health care decision-making. We work with businesses to take advantage of this new way of providing health insurance. Instead of offering a traditional, one-size-fits-all group health insurance plan, businesses give their employees tax-free money to buy health insurance. Venteur's proprietary AI helps employees to scan the hundreds of options available to them and pick the best health insurance plan for them. This is a win-win for employers and employees. Venteur saves businesses 20-30% on their health insurance spend and reduces out-of-pocket medical costs for employees.
Risk Financing Innovator for Self-Insured Healthcare
Kyle Rolfling, Founder, CEO, Aegle Capital - Aegle solutions streamline healthcare financing for self-insured employers and risk-bearing entities by enhancing traditional stop-loss insurance with cost-effective alternative financial tools. These innovative solutions deliver affordable and capital-efficient outcomes, transforming the management of health risk financing.
Health Insurance Innovator
Frank Wu, Founder, CEO, Mending - Mending is a developer of a health insurance platform designed to provide affordable, comprehensive care with a focus on strengthening the relationship between patients and primary care providers. Mending's platform offers primary care and mental health visits, low deductibles, and access to a wide network of doctors and hospitals, enabling individuals and small businesses to receive timely, personalized healthcare at a low cost. Mending currently operates in the states of Oklahoma and Maine.
Benefit Design Innovator
Kobby Amoah, Founder, CEO, River Health - River Health's mission is to provide affordable, accessible healthcare to the under-served hourly workforce, with a strong focus on education and convenience. We only offer plans that make sense for each employee's unique health needs, as a "one-size-fits-all" approach doesn't work.
The employer-sponsored healthcare market is undergoing a rapid seismic shift, driven by the explosive rise of Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRA) and novel funding mechanisms and benefit designs. The current group insurance model has left the industry at its breaking point. Insurance premiums are now exceeding $25,000 annually, rising 22% over the past five years.
Legacy insurers are repositioning. Oscar Health’s CEO has called for ICHRA to replace group plans; Centene has launched a dedicated division with plans priced 20% below market; and UnitedHealthcare is scaling back small group offerings. Humana and Cigna have exited the small group market entirely. This shift is creating major opportunities for startups to gain ground. Fortune 500 companies are now issuing ICHRA RFPs for tens of thousands of employees—one as large as 104,000 covered lives—signaling that ICHRA is moving from a small-business solution to a mainstream strategy for large enterprises.
For investors, ICHRA is more than a healthcare innovation—it’s an entry point to a $1.6 trillion market. It opens the door to investments in personalized health, AI-powered plan guidance, and integrated financial services. With 83% of adopters offering benefits for the first time and 29% annual growth, early-stage companies are building the infrastructure for a post-group-plan future. The transformation is already in motion—the question is who will capture the value as healthcare becomes portable, personalized, and technology-driven.
