Challenge Goal
The Massachusetts eHealth Institute (MeHI) seeks startups and entrepreneurs who are developing and validating digital health-based solutions that support the goals of the Healey-Driscoll administration’s Advancing Health Equity in Massachusetts (AHEM) Initiative to compete in the third Massachusetts Digital Health Sandbox Challenge. This Challenge is divided into four tracks, all aimed at meeting AHEM’s goals of eliminating racial, economic, and regional disparities in health outcomes:
- AI for Health Equity;
- Addressing Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) for Cardiometabolic Diseases;
- Maternal and Infant Health;
- Medicaid Pilot Track (MPT).
Program Overview
A group of external expert reviewers will evaluate applicants and recommend three companies as finalists in each of the four tracks. The 12 finalists selected by MeHI to participate in the program will compete for prizes worth $250,000.
Finalists will take part in Mass Digital Health Connects, a three-month series of informative and interactive virtual workshops featuring prominent voices from across the ecosystem including venture capitalists, state and federal policymakers, and leading researchers. Workshops include topics such as secure clinical data exchange, mitigating bias and responsibly adopting AI, conversations with a venture capitalist, working with payers, and more. Finalists in the Sandbox Tracks (Addressing SDOH for Cardiometabolic Diseases, AI for Health Equity, and Maternal and Infant Health) will also be matched with members of MeHI’s Digital Health Sandbox Network and will scope testing and validation projects.
The Challenge will culminate in an in-person judged competition in May 2025 where participants in the Sandbox Tracks will pitch both their product and their proposed sandbox project. Expert judges will recommend to MeHI one winner in each of the three Sandbox Tracks to each receive $50,000 to complete their validation project. The funding will be paid directly to the sandbox and must be used to cover the sandbox partner’s fees. This level of funding can typically cover user experience testing, access to cutting-edge lab facilities and subject matter experts or a small pilot in a health care setting. No funding will be provided directly to the winners of the Sandbox Tracks. Read about previous projects funded through the Sandbox Program here.
Participants in the Medicaid Pilot Track (MPT) will participate in the same in-person event and pitch their product to expert judges including representatives from UMass Chan Medical School and Community Care Cooperative (C3), an ACO operating in Massachusetts. The Medicaid Pilot Track winner will work with UMass Chan Medical School to pilot their solution with members of C3, an opportunity valued at $100,000. Funding for the pilot will be paid directly from MeHI to UMass Chan Medical School and C3 to cover their fees for conducting the pilot. No funding will be provided directly to the MPT winner.
The deadline to apply is Thursday, December 19. Apply here.
Download the Request for Applications for more information.
View the recording of the launch webinar and information session.
Download the Questions & Answers document.
Early Application Opportunity: Applications submitted by midnight on Friday, November 22 will be reviewed by Massachusetts Technology Collaborative staff and will receive initial feedback by Thursday, December 12. Early applicants may incorporate the feedback and resubmit their application by the final deadline of Thursday, December 19. Please note this opportunity only pertains to applications received by midnight on Friday, November 22. Those received after this date will be reviewed through the normal application process.
Challenge Areas and Solutions Sought
Applicants may submit to one of the following four tracks in the AHEM Challenge. These tracks cover key challenge areas in the broader AHEM Initiative that we believe can be positively affected by digital health solutions. Each track includes examples of challenges and opportunities within the focus area, but these are not exhaustive lists, and any applicants with solutions that support one of the tracks are encouraged to apply. Applicants may only apply for one track and should select the track that best aligns with their solution.
Sandbox Track One: Addressing Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) for Cardiometabolic Diseases
SDOH are the environmental conditions that affect one's health. These social drivers play a critical role in cardiometabolic health, and many of them disproportionately impact communities of color. Digital health solutions can help address the root causes of these disparities, improve health outcomes and reduce premature deaths. Key opportunities include:
- Improving access to testing, diagnostics and care for all Massachusetts residents;
- Improving connections for patients to services that address the increased risk of cardiometabolic issues associated with food insecurity, unclean environment and unequal access to health care;
- Providing solutions for cardiometabolic diseases that are tailored to underrepresented communities.
Sandbox Track Two: AI for Health Equity
AI-powered digital health solutions have the opportunity to address bias in testing, diagnosis, and delivery of care as well as improve access to high-quality healthcare in underserved communities. AI solutions must be properly trained, vetted, and updated to ensure they are not perpetuating existing biases in the healthcare delivery system. Key opportunities include:
- Expanding access to cutting-edge medical interventions in chronically underserved communities, including economically disadvantaged and communities of color;
- Alleviating racial and gender bias in the health care delivery system;
- Increasing the capacity of the healthcare workforce to improve access to high-quality, personalized care.
Sandbox Track Three: Maternal and Infant Health
Over the past 10 years, the rate of severe maternal morbidity in Massachusetts has nearly doubled and these complications have been increasingly concentrated among Black birthing people. Digital health solutions can be a critical tool in improving maternal and infant health outcomes and reducing these disparities. Key opportunities include:
- Improving access to high-quality, culturally competent prenatal and postpartum care to help reduce the rate of severe maternal health complications for all birthing people;
- Decreasing the rate of maternal death, of which 84% of cases are preventable;
- Improving care postpartum to ensure new mothers receive the support they need;
- Addressing inequities and maternal complications for women of color, who are two times more likely to experience perinatal complications than white women.
Medicaid Pilot Track
This track is distinct from the three Sandbox Tracks. Applicants will compete for the opportunity to partner with Community Care Cooperative (C3) and UMass Chan Medical School to conduct a pilot focused on reducing cardiometabolic and cardiopulmonary-related readmissions or unplanned admissions. C3 is looking for:
- Digital health solutions to help them support their members with asthma, COPD and/or heart failure.
- Solutions should offer patients personalized digital health tools and services such as clinical support, medication adherence and connected devices to aid disease management and rehabilitation.
- A solution that is straightforward to implement and easy to adopt by both care teams and patients in their FQHC population. A single customizable platform is preferred though interoperability capabilities can be discussed.
Eligibility
- Applicants must propose a new solution that is not yet widely commercially available.
- Applicants do not need to meet a minimum requirement of revenue or investment to participate in the program. This program is aimed at companies that have at least a minimum viable product that is ready to be validated with a sandbox organization. Companies that have participated in an accelerator program previously will receive preference.
- Applicants may be located anywhere in the U.S. MeHI has set a goal of 50% of the participating companies having a presence in Massachusetts.
- Mass Digital Health Connects will be virtual, but participants must be willing to participate in a live pitch event at the end of the program. The pitch event will take place in Massachusetts in May 2025.
- Participants must agree to participate in annual follow-up surveys for at least five years after the end of the program. The online survey will ask about company metrics including, but not limited to:
- Number of jobs created at your company;
- Number of jobs at your company based in Massachusetts;
- Number of new customers gained;
- Number of new patents, copyrights or trademarks obtained;
- Amount of capital and non-dilutive funding raised;
- In-kind funding and resources provided to support your sandbox project for companies selected as Challenge winners; and
- Diversity of your board members and/or executive team.
| Download the Q&A Document |