Ginger Announces $100 Million Series E Financing from Blackstone to Bring Value-Based Mental Healthcare to Millions of Employees and Health Plan Members

Funding will help company accelerate expansion of high-quality, cost-effective care through employers, health plans, and government payers

Digital health veteran, Jesse Silver, joins as Chief Product Officer to advance innovation and R&D efforts

Ginger, the on-demand mental health company, announced a $100 million Series E financing round led by funds managed by Blackstone Growth (“Blackstone Growth”). This latest round of investment will bring the company’s total funding to over $220 million, on the heels of approximately 3x revenue growth over the past year.

Over 10 million people have access to Ginger in over 40 countries around the world through the company’s partnerships with innovative employers, health plans, and strategic partners. Today, over 500 employers ranging from startups to Fortune 100s, including ViacomCBS, Delta Air Lines, Domino’s, SurveyMonkey, Axon, 10x Genomics, and Sephora, partner with Ginger to cost-efficiently provide employees with high-quality mental healthcare. The company also works with strategic partners like Accolade and Capsule, and 30 integrated health systems and health plans.

Ram Jagannath, Global Head of Healthcare for Blackstone Growth and Blackstone Tactical Opportunities, said, “We’re proud to invest in Ginger, whose mission to expand access to high-quality mental healthcare through innovative technological solutions is only becoming more important. The company’s exceptional team has built a world-class, scalable care model that benefits individuals, employers, and payers – and we’re excited to partner with them moving forward.”

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Last year, Ginger introduced a value-based model that allows employers to offer every eligible employee and adult dependent access to Ginger’s entire spectrum of care for a fixed fee, including unlimited self-guided care, 24/7 on-demand behavioral health coaching, and a predetermined number of therapy and psychiatry sessions. In the last 12 months, nearly 60% of Ginger’s new clients have adopted this option for their employees, demonstrating a significant desire for value-based models in mental healthcare.

With this latest round of funding, Ginger plans to continue expanding access to value-based mental healthcare through additional partnerships with multinational employers and health plans. In the first half of the year, the company also plans to extend its reach to support underserved populations through new government payer relationships and collaborations with non-profit organizations. In addition, this funding will enable Ginger to continue its acquisition of innovative technologies and clinical services to improve and scale its on-demand mental health system.

The COVID-19 pandemic has created a significant increase in demand for mental health support. According to Ginger’s Third Annual Workforce Attitudes Toward Mental Health Report, 48% of employees report experiencing high to extreme stress over the past year – a 7% increase over the last two years. At the same time, the number of employees who have used technology-based mental health support has increased significantly by 66%. Ginger has addressed this skyrocketing need over the last 12 months, having:

• Published the results of two peer-reviewed studies in JMIR, showcasing the success of its collaborative care system in reducing symptoms of anxiety and depression among Ginger’s employer client populations.
• Increased the number of people with access to Ginger to over 10 million, with demand reaching as high as 3x pre-pandemic levels.
• Doubled Ginger enrollment rates across its employer client base. Ginger’s average sign-up rate is over 2x the national average for employee assistance programs (EAPs).

Ginger has also announced the appointment of Jesse Silver as Chief Product Officer. Silver will lead the advancement of Ginger’s member and clinician experiences, including the Ginger member app; the Ginger Care Hub, a proprietary EMR for Ginger’s coaches, therapists, and psychiatrists; and various integrations across the healthcare ecosystem to improve care access. Silver has served as VP of Product at Omada Health, led design work at IDEO, and most recently was SVP of Product at PAX Labs.

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As part of this funding round, Ginger has added Blackstone’s Ram Jagannath to its Board of Directors. Blackstone joins existing investors from Kaiser Permanente Ventures, Cigna Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, Advance Ventures Partners, Khosla Ventures, Health Velocity Capital, City Light Capital, and WP Global Partners.

“The past year demonstrated how employers, health plans, and investors are ready to double down on solutions that address the global mental health crisis,” said Russell Glass, CEO of Ginger. “With this round of funding, we will continue to advance our technology, further our research to improve outcomes, and expand care access within underserved populations.”

Over the past year, Ginger has nearly tripled its employee base and expanded its team of behavioral health coaches, clinicians, engineers, and operational leaders. In February 2021, Ginger was recognized as one of Built In’s Best Places To Work in San Francisco and Best Midsize Companies To Work For in San Francisco. The company has invested heavily in creating a team of providers that can meet members’ needs equitably and with compassion; over 70% of Ginger’s employees identify as female, and nearly 50% of Ginger’s coaches, therapists, and psychiatrists identify as BIPOC (compared to the American Psychological Association average of 15%).

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