Today we’d like to introduce you to Dr. Sophia Yen.
Hi Dr. Yen, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
About seven years ago, as a Clinical Associate Professor at Stanford, I gave a talk on birth control to a room of physicians and the question came up “Why don’t women take their birth control?” One of the top reasons was: didn’t have it on hand. They didn’t have time to run to the pharmacy every single month during the constrained seven days in advance maximum requirement placed by insurance companies. My friend Perla Ni and I realized that this problem was easily solvable. Just ship it to women and keep shipping it (automatic refills) until they tell us to stop.
Then, when we ran ads for “free birth control delivery,” 60% of respondents didn’t have a prescription! I’m a doctor; I can write prescriptions. Thus, Pandia Health was born. Pandia Health is the end-to-end online women’s health solution for expert care by expert doctors, convenience (delivered by mail), and confidentiality. No one runs out of birth control on our watch. We’re building the Online Health Brand Women Trust, starting with birth control and adding on acne, and menopause and more.
If you have a prescription and want to #SkiptheTrip to the pharmacy each month, sign up now for our FREE delivery, automatic refill, and annual reminder to see your prescriber. If you have insurance to cover the medications, you pay us NOTHING. If you need a prescription, you pay us just $20 once a year to use our expert birth control doctors.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Startup life is never a smooth road. There are ups and downs like an endless roller coaster. We have lost great employees because we couldn’t pay them what they needed. We have had a difficult time getting investors because they’re afraid of the competition despite this being a HUGE market and still wide open.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Pandia Health?
PandiaHealth.com makes women’s lives easier by providing easy access to reliable, convenient, and confidential health care via telemedicine and medication delivery, starting with birth control. We are the end-to-end solution for expert, evidence-based women’s health care, providing a telemedicine visit if a woman needs a prescription and “peace of mind” via free delivery with automatic refills.
As the ONLY #WomenFounded, #WomenLed, #DoctorLed birth control company, Pandia Health is building the Brand Women Trust with their Health. We start with birth control and will grow as our patients grow – from birth control to acne to babies to menopause.
When it comes to healthcare, you want the best doctors. Don’t skimp on your health. Read our good vs. bad telemedicine article on six things to look for when choosing a telemedicine provider article https://www.pandiahealth.com/6-things-to-look-for-when-choosing-a-telemedicine-provider/
We also want anyone with a uterus that is bleeding one week out of four to know you can make #PeriodsOptional. See my TEDx Berkeley talk on the science/safety of #FewerPeriods #NoPeriods at the bottom of this page www.pandiahealth.com/periodsoptional
As the only birth control delivery company led by a doctor, we will always tell you what’s best for you health, even if it doesn’t benefit our bottom line. We are building the Online Health Brand Women Trust because we are founded/led by a doctor, woman, mother, feminist. We’ve built the product for ourselves, our daughters, our future granddaughters. Check out our website and follow us on FB/Insta for information about birth control, acne, menopause and women’s health.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
Thank you to our investors! One World Investments, Precursor Ventures, Allectus Capital, Stanford StartX Fund, Backstage Crowd, and our Angel investors. Thank you to our cheerleaders, advocates, supporters from Springboard Enterprises, SheEO, and Women’s Startup Lab. Without their financial support, introductions, and more, we couldn’t be where we are today.
Pricing:
- FREE if you have an active prescription and insurance to cover the meds, included FREE delivery, automatic refills, annual reminder to see your PCP, a Pandia Health PSA in each package, and a freebie e.g. hi-chew, condoms, or stickers in each package.
- $20 ONCE a year to use our expert birth control doctors if you use our delivery service.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.pandiahealth.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pandiahealth/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pandiahealth/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/pandiahealth
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ_dgWnuAPvQZo-PSwsk4IA
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/pandia-health-sunnyvale
- Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@pandiahealth
