HealthQuest Adds Former U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin to Its Board of Advisors

SILICON VALLEY, Calif., May 26, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- HealthQuest Capital, a growth capital firm investing in commercial-stage healthcare companies that meaningfully improve patient outcomes and reduce costs in healthcare, today announced that former U.S. Surgeon General Regina Benjamin, MD, MBA has joined the firm's board of advisors. As an advisor, Benjamin will work with HealthQuest to identify, develop and grow transformative companies with the potential to fundamentally and dynamically improve the healthcare industry.

Benjamin joins an advisory board that includes leading executives representing Bon Secours Mercy Health, Humana, Johnson & Johnson, LabCorp, Mayo Clinic (Florida), Medtronic, and Procter & Gamble.

Regina Benjamin, MD, MBA is the founder and CEO of BayouClinic, and was the 18^th United States Surgeon General (2009-2013). As America's Doctor, she provided the public with the best scientific information available on how to improve their health and the health of the nation. Benjamin specializes in prevention policies and health promotion among individuals as well as large populations, especially concerning obesity, childhood obesity, and children's health. She has special interest in rural health care, health disparities among socio-economic groups, suicide, violence, and mental health. Benjamin holds a medical degree from the University of Alabama Birmingham and an MBA from Tulane University. She currently serves on the boards of Ascension, Kaiser Hospitals and Health Plan, ConvaTec Plc, and Computer Programs & Systems, Inc.

"HealthQuest has a unique, collaborative approach to investing in and developing transformative healthcare companies, and the team recognizes that creating value in healthcare at scale requires coordination of many stakeholders and the inclusion of vulnerable populations," said Benjamin.

"We are honored and delighted to have Regina bring her passion for increasing healthcare access to HealthQuest," said Garheng Kong, founder and managing partner, HealthQuest Capital. "Her incredible breadth of experience, insights and patient advocacy will provide an invaluable resource to our portfolio companies, and make her a complementary addition to our existing board of advisors," said Kong.

Benjamin joins HealthQuest in sharing a passion to support and foster the growth of transformative companies that increase value in healthcare, either by improving patient outcomes, or by reducing inefficiencies and cost. HealthQuest invests across many sectors of healthcare, including medical products, diagnostics/tools, digital healthcare and innovative healthcare services. Examples include:

• Avizia, a telemedicine platform that has partnered with health systems to bring telehealth into underserved areas, and was acquired by AmWell in 2018,
• CleanSlate, a pioneer and leader in outpatient addiction medicine, and
• Castle Biosciences, a diagnostic tools company that offers tumor-specific information and can determine the likelihood of melanoma to spread with increased accuracy and lower cost, that IPO'd in July 2019

About HealthQuest Capital
Founded in 2012 and based in the San Francisco Bay Area, HealthQuest Capital is a growth capital firm investing in commercial-stage companies that meaningfully improve patient outcomes and reduce costs in healthcare. With more than $850 million in capital under management, the firm focuses on fostering innovation across the healthcare industry, including medical technologies, diagnostics, digital health and innovative services. The HealthQuest team combines decades of successful investing experience with deep domain expertise in all aspects of the healthcare industry. For more information, visit www.healthquestcapital.com.

SOURCE HealthQuest Capital

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http://www.healthquestcapital.com