Lifers with Christina Farr

In Episode 6 of Rounds: The Mental Health Moment, Christina Farr and Stephanie Davis break down the latest healthcare headlines, then dig into the mental health space with Jake Cooper, CEO and Co-Founder of Grow Therapy, and Jon Cohen, CEO of Talkspace.

We'll cover:

The latest headlines: CommonSpirit exiting its Conifer contract for $1.9B, Waystar exploring options including a sale, the rally in AI drug discovery names, and Neuberger and KKR investing in Datavant alongside New Mountain Capital

How Grow Therapy differentiated from incumbents, what's next after its $150M Series D at a $3B valuation, and how it scales to 27,000+ providers without losing quality and continuity of care

Where AI belongs in mental health care, from cutting provider documentation time by ~70% to the clinical relationship itself

Why 73% of adults who knew they needed care skipped it, and why traditional EAPs leave employers needing a connected path instead of a cliff

Talkspace's road from SPAC to UHS subsidiary, including the pivot from a D2C subscription app to a payor-based, in-network model

What day one inside a hospital system looks like, and what the UHS deal signals about consolidation vs. staying independent

Hosts and Guests:

Christina Farr, CEO, Second Opinion; GP, Scrub Capital

Stephanie Davis, Healthcare Industry Analyst

Jake Cooper, CEO and Co-Founder of Grow Therapy

Jon Cohen, CEO of Talkspace

Sponsored by Silicon Valley Bank.

Christina Farr talks with David Benshoof Klein, Founder and CEO of Click Therapeutics, days after the FDA cleared Motivista, the first authorized treatment for the negative symptoms of schizophrenia. They discuss why so many digital therapeutics companies failed, and why an FDA-authorized app still has to fight for the coverage a drug would get automatically. David also explains why he thinks AI tools, not pharma sales reps, may be what puts treatments like Motivista in front of doctors.—SPONSOR:Click Therapeutics builds medical-grade patient software across digital therapeutics, software-enhanced drugs, wellness & wearables, and AI-enabled interventions. Its platform offers a library of 100+ validated modules backed by rigorous clinical testing, bringing biotech rigor to any condition with a neurological or behavioral component.To learn more about Click: https://www.clicktherapeutics.com/ To learn more about Motivista: https://www.motivista.com/—Join Christina for upcoming webinars:10/13 - Verifying AI in Medicine: Is Healthcare AI Actually Ready for Deployment? https://streamyard.com/watch/GwsSXwdikhMw 10/28 - Type 2 Diabetes & Cardiometabolic Care: Wearables, AI & GLP-1s https://streamyard.com/watch/uAuwCzUEJTCF 11/3 - Is It Finally the Moment for Alternative Plan Design? https://streamyard.com/watch/ereM3aB58XK4 —LINKS:FDA clears Motivista (CT-155): https://www.clicktherapeutics.com/news/fda-clears-motivista-ct-155-the-first-therapeutic-indicated-for-the-treatment-of-the-negative-symptoms-of-schizophrenia CT-132, Click’s episodic migraine program: https://www.clicktherapeutics.com/products/ct-132 FDA draft guidance, Regulatory Considerations for Prescription Drug Use-Related Software (PDURS): https://www.fda.gov/regulatory-information/search-fda-guidance-documents/regulatory-considerations-prescript ion-drug-use-related-software Click acquires Better Therapeutics’ assets, 2024: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240522194752/en/Click-Therapeutics-Accelerates-Expansion-into-Obesity-and-Cardiometabolic-Disease-With-Acquisition-of-the-Assets-of-Better-Therapeutics-Inc

Chrissy Farr on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LiferswithChristinaFarr Chrissy Farr on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cfarr/ Subscribe to the Second Opinion Newsletter: https://secondopinion.media/ Chrissy’s Book: The Storyteller's Advantage: https://www.chrissyfarr.com/books

—FOLLOW:David:https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidbklein/ Chrissy:https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinafarr/ https://x.com/chrissyfarr Second Opinion Media:https://www.instagram.com/second.opinion.media/ https://x.com/second_op_media —TIMESTAMPS:(00:00) Lead in(00:30) Intro(01:46) First for schizophrenia(02:20) What digital therapeutics means(04:01) Software treats disease(05:35) Drugs plus software(06:55) Negative symptoms explained(09:56) Designing adaptive goals(13:50) Safety and autonomy(16:03) Generative AI in care(22:48) Regulation and evidence(26:55) Digital therapeutics graveyard(27:51) Digital therapeutics graveyard(28:40) Why programs fail evidence(29:38) Click survival playbook(30:50) Commercialization and coverage(31:46) Pharma launch gap(33:42) AI driven prescribing wave(36:37) FDA guidance and pharma cycles(40:56) Pricing value and access(43:48) Hiring for scrappy commercial(46:38) Future of venture and consumers(51:31) OTC migraine and AI assistants(53:42) Text messaging engagement engine(55:15) Wrap

Christina Farr sits down with Aaron Miri, Executive Vice President and Chief Digital & Innovation Officer, Baptist Health, to talk about where AI is changing how a health system runs, and where liability, privacy law and payer friction still slow it down. Aaron explains why Baptist hasn’t hired a help desk agent in over 18 months and why he thinks AI will replace future hiring more than current roles. He also makes the case for a universal patient identifier, calling it the “primary key” AI in healthcare is missing.—Join Christina for upcoming webinars:10/8 - Why Are Hospitals Hiring Chief AI Officers? https://streamyard.com/watch/VjvVZiDN8ZMH 10/13 - Verifying AI in Medicine: Is Healthcare AI Actually Ready for Deployment? https://streamyard.com/watch/GwsSXwdikhMw 10/28 - Type 2 Diabetes & Cardiometabolic Care: Wearables, AI & GLP-1s https://streamyard.com/watch/uAuwCzUEJTCF 11/3 - Is It Finally the Moment for Alternative Plan Design? https://streamyard.com/watch/ereM3aB58XK4 —LINKS: Nature Medicine study comparing general-purpose LLMs with clinical AI tools: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41591-026-04431-5 Utah’s AI prescription renewal pilot (Doctronic agreement): https://ai.utah.gov/agreements/doctronic/ NHS Spine: https://digital.nhs.uk/services/spine HITAC: https://www.healthit.gov/hitac/committees/health-information-technology-advisory-committee-hitac

Chrissy Farr on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LiferswithChristinaFarr Chrissy Farr on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cfarr/ Subscribe to the Second Opinion Newsletter: https://secondopinion.media/ Chrissy’s Book: The Storyteller's Advantage: https://www.chrissyfarr.com/books —FOLLOW:Aaron:https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronmiri/ https://x.com/AaronMiri

Chrissy:https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinafarr/ https://x.com/chrissyfarr

Second Opinion Media:https://www.instagram.com/second.opinion.media/ https://x.com/second_op_media —TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Lead in(00:29) Intro(01:22) ER experience breakdown(03:39) Fixing intake friction(06:26) Clinical AI shortcuts(10:04) Liability and tort reform(14:04) Universal patient ID debate(20:54) Patients versus clinician AI(24:50) Automation and admin jobs(27:42) Automation shrinks back office(29:18) Claims and same day payment(33:20) Cutting costs without knee jerks(35:50) Profit pools and public programs(39:06) Ending payer provider resentment(43:57) Free markets and funding innovation(46:45) Paying for clinical AI(48:26) Good enough AI in practice(50:59) AI risk versus status quo(53:03) Wrap

In Episode 5 of Rounds, Stephanie Davis and Christina Farr break down the latest healthcare headlines — including Oura's step toward an IPO with its S-1 filing revealing $1.4 billion in revenue, and a former Anthropic researcher's warning to the BBC that AI staff are "genuinely frightened" for humanity's future — before sitting down with Megan Scheffel, Head of Life Science and Healthcare at SVB, Dan Bise, Executive Vice President of Strategy & Corporate Development at R1, and Jeremy Friese, CEO and Founder of Humata Health.

We'll cover:

Oura's S-1 filing and what it signals about the company's path to IPO

Key takeaways from SVB's Healthcare Investments and Exits report — including why fewer specialized funds (not less capital) are driving the fundraising slowdown, why deal volume hit a multiyear low even as total dollars held steady, and why investors are increasingly rewarding proven commercial viability over pure technology hype

The diverging exit landscape between biopharma (a record M&A year driven by looming patent cliffs) and healthtech (strong IPO performance, but few companies actually going public)

How blurring lines between Dx/Tools, device, and biopharma are reshaping where capital flows

The thesis behind CD&R and TowerBrook's take-private of R1, and the company's shift from tech-enabled services to a true AI-native, technology-first approach to automating the healthcare revenue cycle

R1's first two acquisitions, Phare Health and Humata Health, and how Humata's prior authorization platform fills a key gap in R1's strategy to reduce downstream payer denials

Dan Bise's investment approach — from setting strategy to evaluating the competitive landscape to aligning investors and the Board — and how it mirrors a thesis-driven, PE-style playbook

Jeremy Friese's perspective as Humata's founder on what set R1 apart from other potential acquirers, and what convinced him to sell

Hosts and Guests:

Christina Farr, CEO, Second Opinion; GP, Scrub Capital

Stephanie Davis, Healthcare Industry Analyst

Megan Scheffel, Head of Life Science and Healthcare at SVB

Dan Bise, EVP, Strategy and Corporate Development at R1

Jeremy Friese, Founder and CEO of Humata Health

Sponsored by Silicon Valley Bank.

Mary Varghese Presti, Corporate Vice President and COO, Microsoft Health & Life Sciences, started her career as a pediatric nurse. She joins Christina Farr to talk about why she wants nurses to demand technology the way physicians do, and what AI has to prove before it's trusted on the clinical side. They get into why nurses have nobody to delegate to, Microsoft's work with Stanford on an agentic tumor board aimed at treatment decisions in days rather than weeks, and her pick between GLP-1s and AI at one, five and ten years.

—Join Christina for upcoming webinars:10/8 - Why Are Hospitals Hiring Chief AI Officers? https://streamyard.com/watch/VjvVZiDN8ZMH 10/13 - Verifying AI in Medicine: Is Healthcare AI Actually Ready for Deployment? https://streamyard.com/watch/GwsSXwdikhMw 10/28 - Type 2 Diabetes & Cardiometabolic Care: Wearables, AI & GLP-1s https://streamyard.com/watch/uAuwCzUEJTCF 11/3 - Is It Finally the Moment for Alternative Plan Design? https://streamyard.com/watch/ereM3aB58XK4 —LINKS: Microsoft Dragon Copilot: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/health-solutions/clinical-workflow/dragon-copilot Healthcare Agent Orchestrator: https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-cloud/blog/healthcare/2025/05/19/developing-next-generation-cancer-care-management-with-multi-agent-orchestration/ "Nursing Is the Surefire New Path to American Prosperity.": https://www.asrn.org/journal-nursing/3467-nursing-is-the-surefire-new-path-to-american-prosperity.html Lifers episode with Peter Lee: https://youtu.be/lxWYV1rNqR4

Chrissy Farr on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LiferswithChristinaFarr Chrissy Farr on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/cfarr/ Subscribe to the Second Opinion Newsletter: https://secondopinion.media/ Chrissy’s Book: The Storyteller's Advantage: https://www.chrissyfarr.com/books

—FOLLOW:Mary:https://www.linkedin.com/in/maryvarghese/ https://x.com/MaryVPresti

Chrissy:https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinafarr/ https://x.com/chrissyfarr

Second Opinion Media:https://www.instagram.com/second.opinion.media/ https://x.com/second_op_media

—TIMESTAMPS:(00:00) Lead in(00:32) Intro(02:08) AI in healthcare hits scale(03:40) Why nursing is the next frontier(05:24) The LLM lightbulb moment(07:35) From hype to pragmatism(11:28) Nurses fear and job security(15:02) Admin bloat and incentives(18:24) Burnout and nursing documentation(20:55) Agentic workflows at the bedside(25:42) Caregiving and consumer copilots(30:20) Learning to trust AI answers(34:28) Clinical AI trust and regulation(39:35) AI and expanding disease definitions(44:22) How AI could reshape care teams(51:41) One five ten year predictions(52:45) Wrap