US life insurtech TCARE raises $17mn for aimed at family caregivers

US life insurtech platform TCARE, which provides support to family caregivers and offers a “first-of-its-kind” caregiver insurance to protect against the cost of caring for a loved one at home, has raised $17mn in an oversubscribed Series A funding round led by prominent insurtech VC firm American Family Ventures.

The latest capital raise builds on a US$3mn seed round from 2020. The Series A round also includes investors like Ziegler Link-age Funds, Unum Ventures, Inception Health, Sompo Holdings, and Plug & Play Ventures.

Missouri-based TCARE is striving to eradicate “caregiver burnout” from the homecare sector – an issue it describes as widespread. According to a report from the CDC, one in three caregivers provide 20 or more hours of care per week, and over half have given care or assistance for at least 24 months.

TCARE works with family caregivers to identify the root cause of their burnout and create a tailored intervention specific to the caregiver’s individual circumstances. It also offers a caregiver insurance product that will help with crucial expenses like home improvements, travel, and lost wages.

In the private sector, TCARE partners with risk-bearing Managed Care Organisations (MCOs) and insurance carriers offering life and long-term care (LTC) insurance.

For the public sector, it licenses its patented platform to caregiver programmes in state governments, Native American tribes and social services agencies.

“We are passionate about care and quality of life for older adults, and whether a person resides in a senior living and care community or their home, caregivers are one of the biggest differentiators”, says John Hopper, Chief Investment Officer of the Ziegler Link-age Funds

Following the pandemic, family caregivers have been under enormous pressure, as have caregivers in senior living and care organisations. Not only do we believe in TCARE’s mission to support family caregivers, but we are also excited to help TCARE explore whether their model could be used to identify and prevent burnout among caregivers in congregate settings.

by Peter Sonner