Healthcare is such a massive space, one that takes up a sixth of the entire U.S. economy, that just one small piece of that pie can be extremely lucrative. Take diabetes, for example, where there has been a slew of different companies tackling that problem, and raising money in the process, including Glooko, Omada Health, Siren and Virta Health. 

Another space that has been on the rise for the last few years is mental health and behavioral health, as those topics have been at the forefront of the news cycle, especially with the rash of gun violence plaguing America.

There is a rise of mental illness across the country with one out of five Americans suffering from some sort of mental disorder, whether it’s depression, bipolar disorder or schizophrenia. In the case of depression, it’s become almost an epidemic from being a rare condition 50 years ago. Critics argue the rise has a lot to do with pathologizing normal psychic and somatic behavior, meaning society’s idea of normal often means never feeling sad or hopeless. Some argue antidepressant drugmakers, who’ve seen their drug usage rise 400 percent in two decades are behind the pathologizing.

Accordingly, the number of companies in this space getting funding has begun to rise in recent years. Growing from 16 in 2013 to 36 in 2015. The number dropped precipitously last year, from 30 in 2016 to just seven in 2017, but already this year we have seen deals such as $40 million for Quartet Health, a platform that brings together primary care and mental health providers.

Save the date! On June 21, Vator and HP will be hosting their latest salon, focused on the rise of these startups and how they are helping patients with their mental health problems. Quartet Health will be joining us!

Here are the companies in this area that have raised the most funding in the past five years, based on data sent to VatorNews from Pitchbook and published by CB Insights. (Note: some of these startups, such as Iora Health, do not specialize in mental/behavioral health but offer it as one of their features or services)

• Recovery Centers For America

Description: "Recovery Centers of America is fundamentally transforming the treatment of addiction and the capabilities of those in recovery"

Amount Raised: $331.5 million

Investors: Deerfield

• Iora Health

Description: "We believe in primary care that puts people first. Because when we can connect on an individual level, we can impact the entire healthcare landscape."

Amount Raised: $123.3 million

Investors: Temasek Holdings, .406 Ventures, F-Prime Capital Partners, Polaris Partners, Flare Capital Partners, Khosla Ventures, GE Ventures

• Quartet Health

Description: "Quartet is a technology company improving behavioral health delivery for patients, providers, and payers"

Amount Raised: $92 million

Investors: F-Prime Capital Partners, Deerfield Capital Management, Oak HC/FT, GV, Polaris Partners, Accretive LLC

• Doctor On Demand

Description: "Doctor On Demand is a mobile app providing fast and easy access to some of the best doctors, psychologists, and other healthcare providers"

Amount Raised: $86.7 million

Investors: 23andMe, Rock Health, Sherpa Capital, Qualcomm Ventures, Tenaya Capital, Shasta Ventures, Rosemark Capital Group, Dignity Health, Jump Capital, Venrock

• US HealthVest

Description: "US HealthVest is an innovative behavioral healthcare company that has redefined the psychiatric hospital space. De novo strategies and acquisitions of operating facilities with unrealized potential are the core of the US HealthVest business model. Each hospital is structured to offer multiple service lines in order to serve the needs of specific patient population groups."

Amount Raised: $86 million

Investors: Polaris Partners, Oak HC/FT, F-Prime Capital Partners, Richard Kresch, Carl Byers