Upperline Health

Upperline Health

Upperline Health was founded in 2017 by CEO Will W. Savage and Dr. Andrew Woods, who serves as Chief Medical Officer. The company raised capital from private-equity backers including General Atlantic, which led a $58M series B round in 2021, and Frist Cressey Ventures, the healthcare-focused venture firm co-founded by former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. The venture's model consolidates independent podiatry and vascular practices into a single network, adding ancillary services such as wound care centers and diagnostic imaging. The firm targets two principal asset classes: value-based risk contracts with Medicare and commercial payers, and ownership of ambulatory surgery centers. Upperline operates in at least seven states—Tennessee, Texas, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana—with a stated focus on underserved rural and suburban markets. As of 2023, the network included more than 150 providers across 80-plus clinic locations, supported by centralized billing, quality reporting, and patient outreach systems. The clinical focus is chronic conditions of the lower extremity: diabetic foot ulcers, peripheral artery disease, venous insufficiency, and Charcot foot. Upperline Health employs a hub-and-spoke model: regional care hubs anchor outpatient surgery and advanced wound care, while spoke clinics provide routine podiatry and screening. Operating companies include Nashville-based physicians group Premier Podiatry and surgical centers in Dallas and Houston. In 2024, the firm announced it had treated over 100,000 unique patients, with more than half covered under a value-based arrangement that ties reimbursement to clinical outcomes and cost reduction rather than volume. Adjacent ventures include a physician-liability captive and a clinical research arm that publishes outcomes in peer-reviewed journals. The structural differentiator is a risk-bearing clinic platform focused entirely on lower-extremity care, one of the highest-cost categories for Medicare, Medicaid, and managed-care plans. Unlike general primary-care aggregators, Upperline captures both physician fees and facility fees while controlling the full episode of care—from screening through surgery and wound monitoring. Its governance includes a board of physician partners and representatives from General Atlantic, Frist Cressey, and Health Velocity Capital.