Butterfly Conservation

This past August saw Butterfly lay off about 60 employees, or about 10% of its workforce, as part of a plan to extend the company's cash runway. Hand-held ultrasound developer Butterfly Network will be looking to net itself a new CEO, following the departure of chief Todd Fruchterman, M.D., Ph.D., almost two years into his tenure. The company and Fruchterman “mutually agreed” that he would leave his positions as president, CEO and member of its board of directors, according to a press release. Fruchterman will stay on through the end of the year to work with the leadership team on the transition. Butterfly’s founder and board chairman, Jonathan Rothberg, will serve as interim CEO during the handover. Fruchterman took the helm in February 2021, just weeks before Butterfly went public through a $1.5 billion SPAC deal that placed it on the NYSE. He previously served as the president and general manager of 3M's $4.8 billion medical solutions division, as well as chief medical officer and chief technology officer during his near-decade with that company. In August, Butterfly laid off about 60 employees, or about 10% of its workforce, as part of a plan to generate cost savings of about $3 million per month. In 2022, the company posted quarterly net losses in the tens of millions of dollars. At the time, the company's share price spiked, but the value has since dropped 67% to about $2.80. Though the company’s revenues have been increasing, operating expenses have remained higher. For this year’s third quarter, Butterfly reported a net loss of $54.7 million. Revenues were up 34.2% to $19.6 million, an increase from the $14.6 million it saw during the same three months the year before, including a 71% gain in software subscription sales. That was offset by the $57 million in operating expenses, up 9.9% versus $51.9 million in the third quarter of 2021. The company attributed the expenses primarily to higher payroll and additional investments in its R&D and commercial infrastructure. “Our path to transformation at scale is on the right track, and while our rate of revenue growth was slower than we anticipated, we are receptive to the learnings in the market and adapting where needed. We are also evolving as a company to bring discipline to both how we generate revenue and manage expense,” Fruchterman said in the company’s early November earnings announcement. At that time Butterfly also revised its financial guidance for the full year, lowering its revenue forecasts to between $73 million and $76 million, down from the $83 million to $88 million it had predicted the quarter before. “As many in our industry have noted, intensified labor constraints in the third quarter and associated budget pressures from temporary labor costs have limited client-side implementation capabilities and caused deferrals in adoption of medical technology more broadly,” said the company, which has set a goal of making hand-held ultrasound devices as ubiquitous in patient care as the stethoscope.

Butterfly Network, maker of a handheld, smartphone-connected ultrasound system, announced that president and CEO Dr. Todd Fruchterman is stepping down. He also will leave his position on the board of directors. Jonathan Rothberg, founder and chairman of the board, will step in as interim CEO, and Fruchterman will assist Butterfly's leadership with the transition until the end of the year. "On behalf of the board I want to thank Todd for his vision, passion and dedication to Butterfly during his tenure," Rothberg said in a statement. "Todd has built a highly capable leadership team, who will function in the interim to ensure continuity while we conduct a search for a new chief executive who will continue the company’s growth." In November, Butterfly posted its Q3 earnings with revenue of $19.6 million, a 34.2% increase from $14.6 million in Q3 2021. Still, the company posted a net loss of $54.7 million compared with a $13.6 million loss in Q3 2021. Mental health-focused telehealth platform Brightside Health appointed Jeff Margolis as an independent board member and Dr. David Shulkin as an advisor. Margolis and Shulkin's positions became effective on October 1. Margolis is the former CEO and chairman of the consumer health engagement tool Welltok. Shulkin served as the ninth secretary of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs in the Trump Administration and the Under Secretary of Health for the VA in the Obama Administration. "We're pleased to welcome Jeff Margolis to our board of directors and Secretary David Shulkin as an advisor to Brightside Health at a time when there is a profound need for telehealth solutions that treat people with more severe mental health conditions," Brad Kittredge, cofounder and CEO of Brightside Health, said in a statement. "As Brightside Health continues executing on its next phase of growth, we're confident that Jeff and David will help us partner with healthcare stakeholders to reach those who need timely, high-quality care the most." Brightside Health, which offers medication treatment and virtual therapy for anxiety and depression, received $50 million in Series B financing in March. In the prior year it garnered $24 million in Series A funding. Diabetes care company Podimetrics announced the expansion of its executive team and the addition of a new board member. Sid Rao joins as its chief information officer. Dr. Gary Rothenberg will serve as director of medical affairs, and Sukanya Soderland will join its board of directors. Rao will lead the company's strategic IT efforts, while Rothenberg will utilize his more than 20 years of experience as a practicing podiatrist and associate professor of internal medicine and director of fellowship training at the University of Michigan. Soderland is the senior vice president and chief strategy officer for Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts and cofounded the Oliver Wyman Health Innovation Center. "Adding Sid and Gary to our executive team, and Sukanya to our board, will only further set us up for success in our mission to bring preventive care into the homes of patients living with advanced diabetes," Dr. Jon Bloom, CEO and cofounder of Podimetrics said in a statement. The Massachusetts-based company scored $45 million in Series C funding in March. Direct-to-consumer virtual health company Hims & Hers announced the hire of Scott Knoer as its first chief pharmacy and innovation officer. Knoer is the former executive vice president and CEO of the American Pharmacists Association. Before that, he spent almost ten years as chief pharmacy officer at the Cleveland Clinic. "I am humbled by this opportunity to help define the future of modern healthcare and wellness," Knoer said in a statement. "I've spent my career at the cutting edge of pharmacy innovation, and I am incredibly excited to put that skillset to work. The level of innovation and personalization being done across Hims & Hers pharmacy operations is truly disruptive and unlike anything I have seen before." Hims & Hers has partnerships with several companies throughout the U.S., including Delaware-based healthcare system ChristianaCare, hybrid care provider Carbon Health, New Orleans-based not-for-profit Oschner Health, New York-based Mount Sinai Health System, and Privia in Washington, D.C., Maryland, Texas, Georgia and Virginia. In November, it reported third-quarter revenue of $144.8 million, up 95% from $74.2 million in the same period in 2021. The virtual care company logged a third-quarter net loss of $18.8 million, compared with a loss of $15.9 million in the year-earlier period.

Talkspace reported a growing net loss in the third quarter as the teletherapy company continues to shift to a business-to-business model from a consumer-facing product. It reported an $18 million net loss compared with $2 million loss in the prior-year period. It attributes the loss to a lower marketing spend. Talkspace posted revenue of $29 million, an 11% increase from 2021. The company also noted a 117% increase in its B2B revenue, while its B2C revenue dropped 33%. "Our third quarter performance was characterized by a significant acceleration in business-to-business revenue growth, driven by higher penetration of our in-network services and new enterprise client wins, offset by an anticipated decline in business-to-consumer revenue as we continue to optimize consumer marketing spend," CFO Jennifer Fulk said in a statement. "We are working with renewed emphasis on downsizing our cost base and extracting operating efficiencies, while continuing to focus on our B2B franchise and investing in compelling and profitable growth initiatives." Talkspace also announced it had appointed Dr. Jon R. Cohen as the virtual mental health company's new CEO. Cohen has served on Talkspace's board since September, and previously worked at commercial lab BioReference Laboratories as executive chairman and CEO. The company's cofounders Oren and Roni Frank stepped down from their roles about a year ago. Oren Frank had previously been CEO, while Roni Frank served as head of clinical services. Virtual care company Amwell reported revenue of $69.2 million in the third quarter, an 11% increase from the prior-year period. It posted a net loss of $70.6 million, which was fairly steady, compared with the second quarter this year, when it reported a $69.7 million loss. Amwell reported a $50.9 million net loss in the third quarter last year. In August, Amwell announced it would power CVS Health's virtual primary care service. "Q3 was another important quarter for our company, and we are executing well through a transition time," Dr. Ido Schoenberg, chairman and co-CEO of Amwell, said in a statement. "Feedback is excellent on Converge, our digital care delivery enablement platform. We made great progress with customer migrations this quarter and we are honored that so many, including large, strategic customers, are trusting Amwell as their technology partner for years to come." Direct-to-consumer virtual care company Hims & Hers reported revenue of $144.8 million during the third quarter, an 95% increase from $74.2 million in the prior-year quarter. Net loss was $18.8 million compared with a loss of $15.9 million in Q3 2021. Adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) showed a loss of $6.1 million for Q3 2022, compared with a $9.8 million loss in 2021. "As we continue to achieve scale, we are seeing significant leverage across our operations, leading to our increased full year outlook, which marks a new chapter for us as we transition to expected adjusted EBITDA profitability beginning in the fourth quarter," Hims & Hers CEO and cofounder Andrew Dudum said in a statement. "Given the underlying strength of our model and ongoing momentum across the business, we are confident in our ability to operate profitably going forward while continuing to invest for growth." Massachusetts-based medical device company Insulet posted a net loss of $5.2 million in the third quarter, compared to net income of $12.6 million in the prior year. But the company beat its revenue expectations with $326.1 million, a 23.7% increase in constant currency compared to $275.6 million from last year. Total operating income was $2.9 million, compared with $33.7 million in Q3 2021. Insulat's Omnipod offering, a wearable and waterproof insulin-delivery system, garnered the company $326.1 million in total revenue, an increase of 25.3% in constant currency. U.S. Omnipod revenue increased by 42.4% and international Omnipod revenue decreased by 5.5% from 2021. The company launched its Omnipod 5 Automated Insulin Delivery System into the full U.S. market in early August after receiving FDA 510(k) clearance in January. Insulet plans to submit its basal-only pod for individuals with Type 2 diabetes to the FDA for 510(k) clearance. The company currently has 11 FDA 510(k) clearances. Butterfly Network, maker of a handheld, smartphone-connected ultrasound system, reported third quarter revenue of $19.6 million, a 34.2% increase from $14.6 million in Q3 2021. The Massachusetts-based digital health technology company posted a net loss of $54.7 million compared with a $13.6 million loss in Q3 2021. EBITDA came to a loss of $32.9 million. Butterfly's total operating expenses for Q3 2022 were $57 million, compared to $51.9 million in Q3 2021, an increase of 9.9%. The company said the increase was primarily due to higher payroll expenses and incremental investment in its R&D and business infrastructure compared to Q3 of 2022. In a statement, the company noted it "tightly managed our expenses and effectuated a planned workforce reduction in the quarter, informed by the better understanding of our strategic investment priorities, leading to lower operating expenses and extended cash runway."