Telemedicine marketplace Sifter Health launches with funding from Johns Hopkins University; new platform to enable patients connect with the right virtual provider

Sifter Health, a Baltimore, Maryland-based healthtech startup and a centralized aggregator of active telemedicine companies and service providers today unveiled its platform designed to connect, educate, and help patients navigate to digital healthcare that fits their individual needs. Sifter’s mission is to simplify the telemedicine experience and make it easy for patients to find online health providers that offer services customized to their lifestyle.

“We saw an opportunity to reinvent the telemedicine experience,” says CEO and Founder Andrew Lyle. “We were looking for a seamless solution to navigate through the surplus of providers. Sifter’s goal is to deliver an exceptional digital healthcare experience guided by a telemedicine database with custom online provider search tools.”

Long are the days of visiting a doctor in person. With Sifter, patients explore care options in a customizable and streamlined workflow, making it easy to compare providers side-by-side with unbiased facts and information about their service offerings and quality of care. With over 150 telemedicine providers already browsable on the platform, Sifter offers an array of treatment options in mental health, primary care, skincare, erectile dysfunction, lab testing, COVID-19 screenings, dental, sleep, hair loss, and more.

Originally designed to address the needs of the rapidly growing telemedicine industry, and now with increased regulation due to social distancing and ongoing travel restrictions, telemedicine has become a key resource for patient care needs. COVID-19 has caused a spike in telemedicine utilization and demand across the US. According to Mercom Capital Group, $788 million has been funded to telemedicine start-ups in Q1 2020 (258% jump from 2019). Alongside this market growth, the company has achieved several milestone recognitions. At last week’s Johns Hopkins Carey School of Business Startup Pitch Competition, the company took home first prize and was awarded with $10,000, in addition to winning the Fast Forward U Accelerator program’s top prize of $4,000.

Sifter also includes other direct-to-consumer health providers such as pharmacy services, consultations, cosmetics, and over-the-counter options. As patients use the custom search to filter through their lifestyle and needs, Sifter is able to tailor its provider recommendations even further such as insurance matters, pricing, medical condition, available products, physician visit type, and more.

Through this approach, Sifter aims to help people prioritize a new healthcare routine and develop a positive, long-lasting relationship with their digital providers.