CNO Helps Fund HealthCare.com

CNO Financial Group Inc. is part of an investor group that’s providing $18 million in new cash for HealthCare Inc.

HealthCare Inc. is the New York-based parent of HealthCare.com — a for-profit, web-based supermarket for major medical insurance, Medicare plans, and related products and services.

HealthCare Inc. says it will use the money it has raised to invest in technology and data analysis efforts, and to “accelerate the development and marketing of its proprietary insurance products.”

HealthCare.com competes with other for-profit health insurance web brokers, such as eHealth Inc., HealthSherpa and GetInsured.

HealthCare.com also competes with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ HealthCare.gov Affordable Care Act (ACA) public exchange system, and with state-based public exchange programs, such as Covered California and Connect for Health Colorado.

The company recently introduced a short-term health insurance product that’s designed to appeal to purchasers who want some of the same kinds of features offered by ACA-compliant major medical coverage.

The History

Jeff Smedsrud, Jose Vargas and others founded HealthCare Inc. in 2014.

The company reported in 2015 that had raised $9.5 million from nine investors.

The Funders

The investor providing the most money was Second Alpha Partners, a New York-based private equity firm, according to HealthCare Inc.

The list of investors also included AXIS Capital and CNO.

The companies did not say how much money CNO is investing.

CNO sells Medicare plans and long-term care insurance, along with products such as life insurance, supplemental health insurance products and annuities.