PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 5, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Independence Blue Cross (IBC) and Penn Medicine (The University of Pennsylvania Health System) today announced that they are teaming up with DreamIt Ventures to sponsor the first-ever Philadelphia-based health care "accelerator," an organization that will jump start new companies developing innovative solutions in health care. Designed to help promising health care startups rapidly accelerate the development of new products and high impact business models, the accelerator will provide cash, guidance from experienced health care executives and entrepreneurs, office space, and more to 10 young companies selected for a four-month boot camp.

This collaboration marks the first time a leading health insurer and a leading health care provider have come together to offer entrepreneurs the resources they need to capitalize on emerging health care opportunities.

The accelerator is named DreamIt Health, powered by IBC and Penn Medicine.

DreamIt Health will accept applications from today through February 8 from startups nationwide in the health care sector, and on March 8 will select 10 early-stage companies that have strong founders, innovative products or services, and entrepreneurial passion to participate. During the four-month boot camp, from April to July 2013, the companies will work in space at Venturef0rth in Philadelphia, whose offices are specifically designed to house and support startup companies.

The accelerator will give each selected company a stipend of up to $50,000 plus in-depth mentoring, coaching from experts, and access to other critical health care-specific resources to rapidly develop and test its product, validate its business model with potential customers, and get the company organized and ready to pitch to investors. The program will culminate in a "demo day" when the 10 companies will present their businesses to an audience of leading investors and health care organizations.

"At Independence Blue Cross, we believe that innovation is the key to bringing fresh ideas into health care and truly changing the game," said IBC President and CEO Daniel J. Hilferty. "From the IBX Game Changers Challenge to creating DreamIt Health, we are committed to transforming the Philadelphia region into a national magnet for health care innovation, investment, and employment."

As the Philadelphia region's leading health insurer and leading health system, respectively, IBC and Penn Medicine are uniquely positioned to provide contacts, a potential customer's perspective, and resources like access to data and technology that health care startups need to succeed.

"We are deeply committed to translating strategies from discovery to application in clinical practice," stated University of Pennsylvania Health System CEO Ralph Muller. "Through the partnership of Penn Medicine and IBC on DreamIt Health, we have established a collaborative relationship between the health insurer and the health system, eliminating the usual obstacles to health care innovation."

With DreamIt's unparalleled network of mentors and its proven curriculum that guides the growth of young technology companies, participants in the accelerator will have the opportunity to rapidly build out their products and services using claims and clinical data as well as other resources. By acquiring potential customer validation, participating companies will be able to accelerate their progress toward raising capital and launching to a broader marketplace. DreamIt has launched 80 companies over the past four years (15 more in Philadelphia in the current session) who have raised over $80 million in follow-on investment capital with an enterprise value of close to $330 million.

The accelerator encourages applications from companies nationwide that take a broad view of working across the health care industry, including health insurers, physicians, hospitals, and others in the health care industry, to apply technology to the challenges of proactively keeping people healthy, as well as providing more effective and affordable interventions when people get sick. The accelerator seeks applicants nationwide that "think big" and want to take advantage of the resources that come with this unique collaboration among a health insurer, a health system, and DreamIt.

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Independence Blue Cross, Penn Medicine Announce Philadelphia Health Care Accelerator