Mentorship
Network with mentors ranging from investors to potential strategic partners and customers.
Innovations in Health Equity
An accelerator to reduce health disparities for people of color in the US
About the program
The United States is home to major disparities in healthcare access and quality. Racial and ethnic minority groups have the highest rates of illness and death across most major health conditions, and access to care is limited in many low-income communities.
The Innovations in Health Equity program will support 10-12 entrepreneurs focused on improving health equity for BIPOC, low income, or other underserved communities in the US.
Eligibility
We are seeking startups in the US that are doing at least one of the following:
Increasing access to healthcare delivery and services;
Improving the quality of healthcare;
Supporting the efficiency, effectiveness, and wellbeing of frontline healthcare workers.
Must be legally incorporated in the US as a for-profit entity; with at least one full-time founder based in the US; operations in the US market, an MVP, under $1.5 million in equity; and meaningful customer or business validation (e.g., revenue, successful pilots, number of users, and/or strategic partnerships).
Cohort Companies
Advisory Board Members
Abner Mason
Founder & CEO, SameSky Health
Payal Parikh
Associate, Unseen Capital
Anna Fagin
Principal, Town Hall Ventures
Vincent Barragan
Investment Director, Johnson & Johnson Impact Ventures
Ali Malik
Head of New Markets & Implementations, Cityblock Health
Ella Schwartz
Senior Program Investment Officer, California Health Care Foundation
Michael Penn
Founding Partner, Health Equity Ventures
Janet Boachie
Impact Investing Fellow, California Health Care Foundation
Benefits for startups:
Connections
Build deep connections with other founders in your cohort and our larger Village Capital investor and alumni network.
Training
Join interactive sessions tailored to help your company identify early milestones and prepare for your next round of capital.
Advice
Work with an investment analyst who will coach you 1:1 on building a financial model, identifying unit economics, and using financial metrics.
Exposure
Get featured on Village Capital’s program website and other collateral.
Peer-Selection
The top four startups selected by peers will each receive a USD $50,000 grant.
Program Timeline
Applications Open
May 2
Applications Close
May 31
Cohort Confirmed & Orientation
July
Program
July - October
Latest News
Village Capital, announced the peer-selected winners of its Innovations In Health Equity Accelerator: SpeechMED, Scripted, Strong Children Wellness, and Grapefruit Health.
Ten Startups Selected for Village Capital’s Innovations in Health Equity Accelerator
Village Capital, in collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Impact Ventures, an investment fund of the Johnson & Johnson Foundation, announced that 10 startups were selected to take part in Innovations in Health Equity, an accelerator program for early-stage startups reducing health disparities for people of color in the US.
Applications Open for New Health Equity Startup Accelerator
The program, Innovations in Health Equity, will be run with support from the California Health Care Foundation. Ten to twelve startups will be selected for the cohort, and the top four startups will receive grant funding of $50,000.