Health startup Mahmee raises $3M in funding from Serena Williams

It’s a great week in investment news! Health care Startup Mahmee, raised investment capital lead by Arlan Hamilton’s Backstage Capital. Serena Williams and Mark Cuban contributed towards the $3 million dollar investment.

Melissa Hanna Founder and CEO started Mahmee in 2014 with her mother Linda Hanna. Mahmee is a prenatal and postpartum care management platform. Patients and Providers can access and coordinate prenatal and postpartum healthcare. The platform provides moms to be with access to services such as birth plans, nutrition and wellness programs as well as lactation & infant specialists.

Photographed: Melissa Hanna

Maternal health has been a pressing topic in political debates and social platforms have raised awareness about the issue. Racial disparities in maternal health have raised concerns about the growing number of Black women who are more likely to die of pregnancy-related conditions than white women.

In California, mortality rates among Black infants are 3 times those of white infants In the state of Illinois black women are six times more likely to die of a pregnancy-related condition than white women, regardless of their educational background.

Mahmee aims to bridge the gap of accessibility to adequate maternal care and the healthcare providers, including networks of independent maternity care professionals.

Mahmee’s recent investment is a huge feat in the uphill battle of maternal healthcare in Black women. As policy makers, birth workers, nurses and advocates work on long term solutions to fix a broken health care system, companies like Mahmee bring us a sense of hope that change is soon to come.