Workit Health

Workit Health operates a 100% online addiction treatment program delivered through a mobile app, in which licensed clinicians—physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants—meet members by video and can prescribe FDA-approved medications for addiction treatment (MAT), including buprenorphine/naloxone (Suboxone) for opioid use disorder and kratom/7-OH dependence, and naltrexone or acamprosate for alcohol use disorder. Care includes medication management with prescriptions sent to a member's local or delivery pharmacy, ongoing follow-up visits and dose adjustments, guided online recovery groups and peer forums, and in-app messaging with a care team.

The company also treats conditions that commonly co-occur with substance use. Providers can prescribe for anxiety, depression and insomnia, and the platform supports hepatitis C treatment and PrEP for HIV prevention; in 2021 the offering was expanded to include primary care and psychiatric care, including ADHD. Onboarding is designed as a short in-app flow covering insurance verification, intake and first-appointment scheduling, with the company stating first appointments typically occur within one to two days. Workit describes its clinical approach as harm-reduction-first and evidence-based, without abstinence or 12-step requirements, and positions itself against 30-day inpatient rehab for people who cannot step away from work or family.

Workit maintains an internal research group, Workit Labs, that publishes peer-reviewed studies and outcomes data on topics including telemedicine treatment for opioid use disorder among rural Americans following COVID-19 prescribing flexibilities, MAT retention, pregnant patients, hepatitis C co-treatment and virtual recovery support. The company reports SOC 2 Type II certification, WCAG compliance and LegitScript certification.

Founding story

Workit Health was founded in 2015 by Robin McIntosh and Lisa McLaughlin, two women in long-term recovery who had encountered the shortcomings of the U.S. treatment system firsthand and set out to build medication-based addiction care that could be accessed from a phone without inpatient stays or judgment.

Business model

Workit Health delivers clinical services directly to consumers through its app, contracting with health plans so that care is in network. Members can use insurance—including commercial plans, Medicaid in eligible states and Medicare—or pay out of pocket. The company also states that it partners with individuals, health plans and employers.

Revenue comes from reimbursed clinical services and self-pay subscriptions. With insurance, members typically pay $25–$35 per month out of pocket, covering clinician visits, care-team messaging, medication management, recovery groups and lab/prior-authorization assistance, with medication billed separately by the pharmacy. Self-pay pricing is listed at $75 per week ($90 first visit, roughly $300 per month) for the opioid, kratom and 7-OH program and $150 per month ($250 first month) for the alcohol program.

Traction

The company reports more than 35,000 people treated since inception, 54% of members still in treatment at six months versus a 22% national average, 95% of members starting care within two days, and a 4.7 App Store rating with 9 in 10 members saying they are extremely likely to recommend. At the time of the 2021 Series C, membership had grown 400% over the prior 18 months, 84% of members stayed beyond 30 days and 41% beyond one year, and its clinical and counseling programs were covered by insurance for more than 93 million lives.

Latest developments

Workit has added a telehealth program specifically for kratom and 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) dependence using a Suboxone-based protocol and a kratom-specific member forum. Its current leadership is headed by CEO Gil Kochman and CMO M. Justin Coffey, M.D., and the company continues to publish outcomes research through Workit Labs while advocating for policies preserving fully virtual access to addiction treatment.