For the last two years, Criterion Ventures has been on an incredible journey – resulting in the discovery of the root causes of medical debt and the design of an innovative approach to alleviate the burden. 

With funding from the Rockefeller Foundation, Criterion led a large group of participants in an exhaustive consultative process that mapped the issue.  The results of this phase are presented in the Mapping Report.  Our research led us to discover leverage points, areas of impact where change is possible, and components of the system that could be re-organized to lead to solutions.

A defining moment was when we discovered the underlying system foundation to medical debt was a stunted and irrational $300 billion cash market.  Our exploration of the implications of an irrational cash market in healthcare are presented in our seminal Cash Market Report.

In response to our findings, Criterion has launched Healthcare_Uncovered, a venture designed to rationalize the cash market through a community organizing approach with a card-based technology platform.  The Healthcare_Uncovered approach results in greater access to health-directed cash purses, increased transaction transparency for patient and provider, and enahnced financial control for individuals and families.