Industry veterans introduce tech-enabled program in response to coronavirus pandemic, widening access to credit for medical expenses with affordable rates and simple approval
Covered Holdings announced the official launch of Covered Care today. Created to provide affordable healthcare financing for people declined by traditional credit, Covered Care simultaneously supports credit-challenged Americans as well as the healthcare professionals who want to serve them.
Financial technology serial innovators Ken Rees and Tim Ranney developed Covered Care in response to emerging medical needs amid the coronavirus pandemic. With healthcare practices eager to grow again but traditional credit providers tightening availability, they realized the critical need for affordable healthcare finance options to underserved Americans.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has created a perfect storm for the healthcare industry in this country. Just as practices are opening their doors again, most lenders are reducing access to credit for the people who most need it,” said Ken Rees, founder and CEO, Covered Holdings. “The current health crisis placed a spotlight on a serious market need to connect these two groups, so medical professionals can focus on serving their patients and patients can get affordable credit to cover those expenses.”
According to data from FICO and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, over half of American adults have a credit score under 700 or no score at all. These consumers are typically denied credit or given prohibitive interest rates – often for medical needs. Covered Care offers high approval rates for healthcare financing and a fast, hassle-free experience for non-prime customers. They call this “Credit at the Speed of Life.”
“I’ve seen most of the underwriting strategies used for higher risk populations in the past 15 years,” said Tim Ranney, co-founder and Chief Credit Officer of Covered Holdings, and former founder and CEO of Clarity, the leading provider of non-prime credit data. “We have a better approach that allows us to extend credit to most applicants while keeping APRs affordable. Our goal isn’t just to approve a few more customers than other providers – our ambition is to approve everyone.”
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