Curative

Based in Silicon Valley, California, Curative is a healthcare technology company that provides employer-based health insurance plans featuring zero out-of-pocket costs for in-network care after a baseline visit. The organization originally operated as a diagnostics firm during the pandemic, scaling rapidly from seven to 7,000 employees while delivering 35 million COVID-19 tests and 2.5 million vaccines to the general public. Transitioning to the commercial insurance sector, the firm now offers vertically integrated health plans that achieve a 94 to 98 percent member engagement rate through preventative care models and artificial intelligence tools. Curative focuses its employer-sponsored coverage primarily on large corporate markets in Texas and Florida, supported by a $150 million capital infusion and an A- financial strength rating from AM Best. The enterprise was founded in January 2020 by Fred Turner, Isaac Turner, and Tami Wilson-Ciranna.

# Curative: High-Level Overview

Curative is a healthcare services company that evolved from COVID-19 testing infrastructure into an innovative health insurance provider.[1][2] Founded in 2020, Curative initially gained prominence by scaling COVID-19 testing and vaccination operations across the United States, administering over 35 million tests and 2 million vaccines.[1] The company has since pivoted to its core mission: reengineering employer-based health insurance through radical simplification. Curative's flagship product eliminates traditional friction points—no copays, no deductibles, and no cost-sharing for in-network care—while maintaining competitive premiums and transparent pricing.[2] This model has achieved a 94% member engagement rate, substantially exceeding industry standards.[5]

The company serves employers and their members, solving a fundamental problem in American healthcare: the complexity and hidden costs that prevent people from accessing care. Curative's growth momentum is evident in its recent $150 million funding round, which valued the company at $1.3 billion, positioning it as a serious challenger to traditional health insurance models.[6]

# Origin Story

Curative was founded in January 2020 by Fred Turner (CEO), Isaac Turner (CTO), and Vlad Slepnev, initially as an unofficial spinout of Shield Bio genetic testing lab.[1] The founders' original mission was to develop diagnostic tools for sepsis detection and management. However, the urgent national shortage of COVID-19 testing capacity in March 2020 prompted a decisive pivot—the company rapidly shifted its entire focus to pandemic response.[1]

This pivot proved transformative. By November 2020, Curative had administered over 2 million tests in Los Angeles alone and expanded to include test site management, mobile testing vans, and proprietary results reporting software.[1] The company's operational excellence during the pandemic—scaling from concept to millions of tests in months—demonstrated the founding team's ability to execute at speed. In December 2020, Curative extended into vaccine distribution and management, further cementing its role as critical pandemic infrastructure.[1] By July 2021, the company transitioned to Abbott's validated assay technology, showing pragmatism about its own capabilities.[1]

The leadership team brings complementary expertise: Fred Turner has been recognized on Forbes' "30 Under 30" and serves on Fast Company's Impact Council; Dr. Isaac Turner holds a Ph.D. in Bioinformatics from Oxford and architected the scaling of lab operations; Tami Wilson-Ciranna, President and CFO, brings extensive experience from high-growth biotech companies including Prolacta Bioscience.[5]

# Core Differentiators

• Radical simplification of health insurance: Zero copays, zero deductibles, and zero cost-sharing for in-network care eliminate the administrative burden and financial uncertainty that plague traditional plans.[2]

• Proven engagement model: The 94% member engagement rate demonstrates that removing friction actually drives participation—members use their benefits when costs aren't hidden.[5]

• Operational excellence at scale: The team's ability to build and manage millions of COVID tests and vaccinations proved they could execute complex logistics and clinical operations.[1]

• Financial strength: Curative secured an A- (Excellent) Financial Strength Rating from AM Best for the third consecutive year, signaling stability and regulatory confidence.[2]

• Data-driven product development: The company emphasizes continuous monitoring and experimentation to optimize outcomes, moving beyond traditional insurance's static model.[2]

• Mission-driven culture: Unlike traditional insurers optimized for claims denial, Curative's stated mission is creating sustainable healthcare that makes it "easy to actually achieve better health."[2]

# Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

Curative sits at the intersection of three powerful trends: the collapse of trust in traditional health insurance, the rise of employer-sponsored alternative benefits, and the application of technology to reduce healthcare friction. The company is riding the wave of employer dissatisfaction with legacy insurers—companies increasingly recognize that traditional plans create perverse incentives (denying care to maximize profits) that harm both employees and organizational productivity.

The timing is critical. As healthcare costs continue to consume larger portions of employer budgets, and as younger workers demand transparency and simplicity, Curative's model addresses a genuine market gap. The company's recent $1.3 billion valuation reflects investor recognition that health insurance—one of America's most entrenched industries—is ripe for disruption.[6]

Curative's influence extends beyond its direct customers. By demonstrating that a health insurance plan can achieve 94% engagement through simplicity rather than complexity, the company is forcing incumbents to reconsider their models. The company also validates a broader thesis: that operational excellence and technology can solve problems that regulatory capture and misaligned incentives have made intractable.

# Quick Take & Future Outlook

Curative's trajectory suggests a company transitioning from crisis responder to category creator. The pivot from pandemic testing to health insurance wasn't opportunistic—it reflected the founders' deeper insight that healthcare's core problem is systemic complexity, not just testing capacity.

The next phase will test whether Curative can scale its model beyond early adopters. Success requires navigating regulatory complexity, managing medical loss ratios (the percentage of premiums spent on actual care), and proving that simplicity doesn't mean inadequate coverage. The company's A- rating and $150 million raise suggest confidence on these fronts.

What's particularly intriguing is whether Curative's model becomes a template for other healthcare verticals. If employer-based health insurance can be simplified and made transparent, why not pharmacy benefits, mental health, or dental? The company's influence may ultimately be measured not by its own scale, but by how many competitors it forces to abandon opacity in favor of clarity.