OODA Health

# OODA Health: High-Level Overview

OODA Health is a healthcare financial technology company that transforms healthcare administration by enabling real-time interactions between consumers, providers, and payers.[1] The company builds a platform designed to eliminate friction and delays in payment processes, with the goal of saving $400 billion in wasted healthcare spending while improving the member experience and fostering collaboration between providers and payers.[1][2]

OODA Health serves a critical pain point in the healthcare system: the complexity and inefficiency of claims processing and patient billing. Rather than building consumer-facing applications, OODA operates as a B2B2C platform, partnering directly with major health plans and healthcare providers including Anthem, Dignity Health, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arizona, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Blue Shield of California, and CommonSpirit Health.[1][3] The company's platform connects payer workflows for nearly 20 organizations and enables streamlined payment experiences that reduce administrative burden for both providers and patients.[3]

# Origin Story

OODA Health was founded in 2017 by a team of seasoned healthcare entrepreneurs with deep industry experience.[9] The founding team includes Seth Cohen (President, COO, and co-founder), who previously worked at Anthem Inc. as an Executive Vice President, alongside other healthcare technology veterans.[7] The team came together around a shared vision: creating a healthcare system liberated from the estimated $400 billion in annual waste caused by inefficient payment processes.[5]

The company emerged from a recognition that the healthcare payment ecosystem—despite being central to the entire industry—remained fragmented and antagonistic rather than collaborative. The founders believed that by creating a neutral, technology-enabled platform, they could align the incentives of payers, providers, and patients around faster, clearer payment experiences.[6]

# Core Differentiators

• Neutral platform architecture: OODA positions itself as a collaborative intermediary rather than a competitor to either payers or providers, enabling both sides to work together on payment efficiency.[6]

• Real-time payment capabilities: The platform enables real-time interactions and payments between all stakeholders, contrasting sharply with traditional claims processing that can take weeks or months.[1][2]

• Enterprise partnerships at scale: The company has secured partnerships with major national health plans and large healthcare systems, giving it significant reach and credibility in a highly regulated industry.[3]

• Integrated claims and payment tools: OODA has developed integrated solutions that address specific pain points identified by both members and physicians, such as billing clarity and payment friction.[6]

# Role in the Broader Tech Landscape

OODA Health operates at the intersection of two major healthcare trends: the digitization of administrative processes and the shift toward consumer-centric healthcare experiences. The company rides the wave of healthcare technology investment focused on reducing administrative waste—a problem that has persisted despite decades of IT spending in the sector.

The timing is particularly significant because major health plans and providers have increasingly recognized that payment friction directly impacts member satisfaction and physician morale. By positioning itself as a neutral platform that benefits all parties, OODA has avoided the typical vendor-versus-customer dynamics that plague healthcare IT. This collaborative model has proven attractive to sophisticated healthcare organizations seeking to modernize their payment infrastructure without replacing their existing systems wholesale.

# Quick Take & Future Outlook

OODA Health's trajectory shifted significantly when Cedar, a healthcare financial experience platform, announced an agreement to acquire the company for $425 million.[9] This acquisition positions OODA's technology within a larger ecosystem focused on the complete consumer financial experience in healthcare—from billing clarity to payment options to claims management.

The acquisition suggests that the future of healthcare payment technology lies in consolidation around comprehensive platforms rather than point solutions. As healthcare continues to grapple with administrative complexity, companies that can unify the fragmented payment experience across payers, providers, and patients will likely become essential infrastructure. OODA's core mission—transforming healthcare administration through real-time collaboration—remains as relevant as ever, now with the backing of a larger platform and expanded resources to scale its vision across the healthcare system.