Babylon Joins Mount Sinai Health Partners to Expand 24/7 Access to Digital Healthcare Services for Millions of New Yorkers

NEW YORK, May 5, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- As New Yorkers remain sheltered in place and hospitals battle overwhelming COVID-19 patient numbers, Babylon announces a comprehensive care solution aimed to quickly put 24/7 digital healthcare services into the hands of millions of New Yorkers, right where they are.

Starting today, every eligible New Yorker can access digital healthcare services through the Babylon app, such as telemedicine, covered normally by their insurance policy. Serving patients straight from their phones, key tools through the Babylon app include a new COVID-19 Care Assistant that provides up-to-date information about COVID-19, with the hopes of easing patient anxiety and helping individuals make informed next steps toward wellness. The Babylon app can be accessed 24/7 and combines updated health information, a symptom checker, live chat with real Babylon team members, symptom logging, and virtual doctor consultations with New York Telemedicine Associates.

With an option to speak to clinicians by video, the service will take pressure off of New York emergency rooms, doctor's offices, and other medical services at a time when so many in the state are at capacity.

As demands on medical professionals, hospitals, and other healthcare facilities grow day by day across the United States, there has never been a greater need to protect and reduce the overall strain on our healthcare professionals. By utilizing AI-powered technology to keep patients informed, and a virtual care model to support the most vulnerable, Babylon can continue to drive forward its mission of increasing access to quality healthcare around the world.

Dr Ali Parsa, CEO & Founder, Babylon, said:

"Babylon is joining with Mount Sinai Health Partners to put a doctor in the pocket of all eligible New Yorkers, 24/7, covered as normal by their insurance policy. At a time that one of the greatest cities in the world is going through one of its worst public health crises, our relationship brings the brilliant services of Mount Sinai Health Partners together with the unique global expertise of Babylon, to give eligible insurance plan members in the city access for their primary healthcare needs, wherever they are and whenever they need it. Together, we will revolutionize healthcare for all in New York City, while freeing up space and time for health workers inside health systems to do their life saving work."

Robert W.  Fields, MD, MHA, Chief Medical Officer, Mount Sinai Health Partners said:

"Babylon, a leader in convenient and accessible digital health care services, is a valuable addition to our high-performing primary care network. New York is the epicenter of the COVID-19 pandemic and more than ever the need to engage with our patients in their homes has become an essential part of healthcare. Having Babylon in our network also strengthens our capacity in this area to serve our patients at the highest level."

The Babylon app provides access to a digital-first healthcare solution that makes available a variety of healthcare services, with aims of fully integrating into secondary healthcare. The relationship between Babylon and Mount Sinai Health Partners illustrates a quality, digital-first care model – underlined by a focus on prevention – that Babylon aims to replicate with other impactful healthcare organizations across the U.S. and worldwide.

As part of Babylon's move into the United States, it has already been providing access to services through the Babylon app to members of certain health plans in Missouri, New York and California, building toward a 50 state network.

This news marks a major announcement for Babylon in the US, after the company announced its $550M funding round last year and looked to quick U.S. expansion in an effort to continue fulfilling its global mission of putting accessible and affordable healthcare into the hands of everyone, everywhere.  

Notes to Editor

About Babylon

Babylon is a globally-leading technology company with the ambitious mission to put an accessible and affordable health service in the hands of every person on Earth.

We combine technology and medical expertise to bring doctors and people closer together, with digital healthcare tools designed to empower people with knowledge about their health. Through a range of digital health services – such as AI-backed digital health tools and video doctor appointments – we give people round-the-clock access to affordable, holistic healthcare services. We work with governments, health providers and insurers across the globe, and support healthcare facilities from small local practices to large hospitals.

With a $2B valuation, Babylon has over 4 million registered patients and has completed nearly 2 million consultations globally. We have teamed up with 170 impactful worldwide partners — including the NHS, Telus Health, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Government of Rwanda — to fulfill our vision of accessible and affordable healthcare, for all. For more information, visit https://www.babylonhealth.com/us.

About Mount Sinai Health Partners

Mount Sinai Health Partners is a clinically integrated network, comprised of Mount Sinai's full-time faculty physicians, associated community physicians, and eight hospitals spanning Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island. Our doctors work closely together and hold each other accountable to deliver high-quality health care to people that is rooted in the best practices of current evidence-based medicine.

Mount Sinai Health Partners builds relationships – with community organizations, health plans and employers – to give our patients a more effective and seamlessly connected health care experience. We embrace population health management and new payment models that reward accountability for cost and quality, participating in managed care agreements with health insurers that foster ongoing health improvement across various patient populations.

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SOURCE Babylon