Trustedoctor merges with critical illness provider Further Group

Digital health and virtual consultation platform Trustedoctor has merged with global critical illness and protection provider Further Group. Its aim is to enable patients in both developed and emerging health economies to access the best treatment from specialist consultants across the globe.

Further, rebranded from BDU International, a spin-out of US healthcare company Best Doctors, which was acquired by global digital healthcare giant Teladoc for US$440m in 2017, provides critical illness products and employee benefits to over 300 insurers and employers in more than 30 countries worldwide. Critical illness, including oncology, cardiology, neurology and transplantation, represents the bulk of its activity, with cancer services making up significant portion of the business.

Under the deal, Further Group will initially offer access to Trustedoctor’s digital consultation platform as an add-on to existing policies or new bespoke corporate offering as it rolls the product out across the business.

Commenting on the deal, Ahedo said: ‘By merging, Further and Trustedoctor are leading the way in affordable insurance solutions for serious illnesses. Both organisations share the same fundamental principle: a belief that it should be as easy as possible for patients with serious medical conditions to access the best medical specialists and treatment options, wherever they are in the world. Together, we will continue to remove financial and logistical hurdles faced by consumers that want to access the very best treatment when faced with a serious illness.’

Founded in 2016, Trustedoctor is currently used by over 1,200 doctors in 12 countries. It has reported significant growth in the number of consultants using its platform since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and last year it partnered with many hospitals including The London Clinic to provide private patients in the UK and overseas access to pre- and post-operative remote consultations.

Lukasz Rzeczkowski, co-founder and chief development officer for Trustedoctor stated “With treatment abroad products offered by Further we have super-charged our Trustedoctor medical travel offering (the platform, service and the end-to-end journey of international patients). I believe this is a pivotal moment for our expansion with the demand for virtual care coupled with the affordable insurance solutions covering the cost of treatment for serious illnesses (covered by the critical illness cover) creating borderless access to the leading experts around the world.”