Company: Papa, Miami, FL
Company Description: Papa is creating a new kind of care, built on human connection. Through our national network of empathetic Papa Pals, we provide companionship, personalized non-medical care, and everyday assistance to Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, and commercial health plan members and employees. The result: less loneliness, fewer trips to the emergency room, a brighter outlook, and better physical health.
Nomination Category: Company / Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Company of the Year - Health Products & Services - Medium
 Nomination Title: Papa
- Which will you submit for your nomination in this category, a video of up to five (5) minutes in length about the achievements of the nominated organization since January 1 2021, OR written answers to the questions for this category? (Choose one):
Written answers to the questions
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the nominated video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this first question: Briefly describe the nominated organization: its history and past performance (up to 200 words):
Total 163 words used.
Papa was founded in 2017 to solve a real-life need: Ensure our founder’s grandfather (“Papa”) wasn’t lonely. Andrew Parker’s Papa didn’t need help with bathing nor feeding, so he wasn’t a fit for traditional home care. What he needed was a pal—someone to check up on him, help with grocery shopping or getting to doctor’s appointments, and importantly, provide companionship. What started as “grandkids on demand”—college students Andrew hired through Facebook to meet with his Papa a few times a week—burgeoned into a unicorn healthcare company delivering thousands of hours of social support and companionship every single day
Today, Papa is creating a new kind of care, built on human connection. Across the country, around 100 health plans and employers look to Papa to provide vital social support to their members: older adults and families who we pair with “Papa Pals.” A new workforce unleashed by the power of technology, Papa Pals help address unmet social needs while relieving the caregiver burden.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this second question: Outline the organization's achievements since the beginning of 2021 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
Total 240 words used.
- Rapid Sustained Growth: Amid the heightened need for social support during the pandemic, Papa grew 600% from 2020-2021. From 2021-2022, the company continued its momentum with 333% YoY growth in membership. Today, Papa has around 100 clients, including several Fortune 50 companies and all of the nation’s largest payers.
- Funding: In 2021, Papa raised a total of $210 million to help scale its approach to addressing loneliness and other social drivers of health (SDoH), bringing its valuation to $1.4 billion.
- Market Expansion: In 2022, Papa expanded into the employer benefits space, bringing first-of-its-kind flexible family care to employees when and where they need it, in support of the ~45 million Americans juggling work and caregiving responsibilities.
- Evidence: Recent research has proven the clinical and financial impacts of Papa’s companion care model:
- A six-month program among Medicaid high emergency department (ED) utilizers found a: 33% reduction in overall healthcare costs, 25% reduction in ED visits, 14% reduction in hospital readmissions, and an increase in cancer screenings and diabetic eye exams.
- An analysis by a leading actuarial firm using data from a regional Medicare Advantage plan found Papa members had 34% fewer ED high-utilizers (members with 4+ ED visits during the intervention year, 2021) and experienced an 11% decline in hospital readmissions.
- In a randomized, controlled study of chronically ill members, 69% reported a significant reduction in loneliness after using Papa’s services, while 39% reported no longer being lonely at all.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this third question: Explain why the achievements you have highlighted are unique or significant. If possible compare the achievements to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):
Total 248 words used.
Papa was the first to work with health plans to offer non-medical support to combat loneliness and address social health as a key to overall health improvement. As health plans realized the impact on their members (and bottom line), they have continued to invest in Papa and SDoH as a whole. Our substantial YoY growth and investments reinforce this and signal a broader industry shift.
While health plans and other stakeholders have historically struggled to access and understand people’s barriers to health, Papa Pals form trusted bonds that allow them greater access and understanding. They’ve been able to uncover barriers to health, like lack of transportation, unstable housing, missed medical appointments, and poor mental health, so Papa and/or the member’s health plan can take action before they experience a negative health outcome.
With upwards of 80% of health outcomes driven by social factors, we’re seeing more appetite for investing in non-clinical drivers in corresponding proportion. But data is needed to show what works (and how) in order to drive industry change and scale innovative models among legacy players. With dozens of studies and data queries executed over the past two years, Papa has successfully demonstrated the impact of companion care.
Papa has also carved out a unique market position in the employer benefits space. While other solutions focus narrowly on one need, like child care, Papa can be tailored to employees’ increasingly diverse and complex needs, for help with aging or ill loved ones, children, pets—or caregivers themselves.
- You have the option to answer this final question: Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 194 words used.
- Papa’s website
- Financing announcements:
- Research:
- Growth & Expansions:
- Relevant Media:
| Attachments/Videos/Links: |
|---|
|
