Big Health Raises $24M as Digital Therapy Makes Comeback

Big Health just raised $23.7 million to expand its mental health apps, marking a turning point for an industry that many had written off as dead.

The company, founded in 2010, creates cognitive behavioral therapy apps that treat anxiety and insomnia without pills or office visits. After watching competitors collapse and investor interest fade, Big Health is now riding a wave of renewed confidence in digital treatments.

The timing matters. For years, digital therapeutics companies promised that app-based treatments would revolutionize healthcare, making therapy accessible to millions who couldn't afford traditional care. But the sector hit rock bottom in 2023 when Pear Therapeutics went bankrupt and Akili Interactive's ADHD video game treatment flopped.

The problem wasn't the technology. Convincing insurance companies, doctors, and patients to trust an entirely new type of treatment proved far harder than anyone expected.

Now things are shifting. CEO Yael Berman, who took the helm in 2024, says the breakthrough came when Medicare established billing codes specifically for digital mental health treatments. That simple administrative change means doctors can finally get paid for prescribing apps, and patients can use insurance to cover the cost.

The Ripple Effect

This funding extends far beyond one company's bank account. Mental health care in America faces a crisis of access, with millions unable to find or afford traditional therapy. Apps that deliver proven cognitive behavioral therapy could reach people in rural areas without therapists, workers who can't take time off for appointments, and anyone priced out of conventional treatment.

The investment also validates years of research showing that well-designed apps can produce real clinical results. Big Health's programs use the same cognitive behavioral therapy techniques that work in therapist offices, just delivered through a smartphone screen instead.

Notable investors backing this round are betting that the infrastructure is finally in place. With billing codes established, health systems adopting digital tools, and patients increasingly comfortable with app-based care, the timing feels different than the overhyped early days.

The mental health app market still faces skeptics, and rightfully so after past failures. But this investment suggests that software-based treatments may finally be ready to deliver on their decade-old promise of making quality mental healthcare accessible to everyone who needs it.