that its healthcare company, Verily, more than doubled its revenue to become the biggest Alphabet subsidiary after Google proper — and that its health insurance business, Granular, is the biggest contributor to that growth. Granular’s revenue “rose nearly sixfold through the first nine months of last year to $151 million, from $27 million a year earlier,” writesBut Granular doesn’t sell health insurance to employees.
What makes Granular different from other stop-loss providers? That’s less clear. The company advertises that “Granular uses an intelligent framework to better protect self-funded employers from the cost volatility of a workforce with diverse health-related needs,” but I think that just means it’s cheaper.
But perhaps it’s more competitive because Google thinks its data makes for more accurate bets. The San Joaquin Valley Insurance Authority notes that Granular would be providing its service alongside “Point6,” which appears to beit “brings actionable and integrated solutions focused on the 0.6% of the employee population that is driving 35% of employer healthcare expenditures.”
Either way, it’s not exactly the image that I typically associate with Google’s health efforts. Originally, Verily was most closely associated with the dream of a smart contact lens