LOS ANGELES, CA — (Marketwired) — 12/05/13 — Brighter (), the simple, free alternative to dental insurance, today announced Matt Miller as the newest addition to its Board of Directors. Miller is a well-respected author, columnist, radio host, television commentator and consultant whose work focuses on agenda-setting ideas and creative problem-solving in the public, private and nonprofit sectors.
“Matt brings a valuable healthcare perspective to our Board of Directors,” said Jake Winebaum, CEO and Founder of Brighter. “Brighter is fundamentally changing the way people purchase their health care and Matt-s extensive knowledge and work involving public outreach will help us refine and communicate this new approach.”
Miller is a weekly columnist for Washington Post, the host of “Left, Right & Center,” public radio-s popular political week-in-review program, and a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress. He is the author of two books — The Two Percent Solution: Fixing America-s Problems in Ways Liberals and Conservatives Can Love (a Los Angeles Times bestseller), and The Tyranny of Dead Ideas. He appears regularly on CNN and MSNBC, and previously served as a senior advisor in the Office of Management and Budget in the Clinton Administration. Miller also serves as consultant to corporations, government, and nonprofit organizations on issues of strategy, policy and communications.
“Everyone knows bending the cost curve in health care is one of the biggest economic challenges in America,” says Miller, “with huge implications for every business, government and family. What no one yet understands is that some promising answers are being piloted in a surprising corner of health care: the mostly direct-pay $140 billion market for dental care.”
When asked about where dental stands in comparison to overall healthcare spending, Miller says the answer may surprise people. As it turns out, spending on dental care rivals what is spent in emergency rooms or ICUs nationally, roughly 1% of GDP. Yet insurance covers less than half of dental costs because nearly one in two Americans lack any coverage for this essential service. “That makes Brighter the ideal place to model a new kind of marketplace that is already delivering high quality care at substantial savings for patients,” Miller says.
“Early results suggest that Brighter-s model has the potential to save American families billions of dollars in the years ahead,” he continues, “while assuring they get the care they need. It is a classic example of entrepreneurial innovation that addresses a huge social and economic problem. I look forward to working with Jake Winebaum and his talented team — along with Brighter-s world class investors — as Brighter points the way to a more cost effective health care system.”
Brighter is an online service that is bringing price transparency and affordability to the dental industry, and to the 47 percent of Americans who currently lack any form of dental insurance. Brighter currently partners with more than 600 dentists in LA County with pre-negotiated rates on dental procedures to save its members an average of 50 percent on their dental costs. In addition to affordable pricing, Brighter delivers quality transparency by providing comprehensive profiles of its dentists including dentists- education and credentials, office amenities, patient reviews, appointment schedules, price (both typical out-of-pocket prices and exclusive Brighter prices), as well as videos and photos.
Brighter recently announced its Series C funding for $15M (a total of $28M since their initial seed round), financed by Mayfield Fund, Benchmark and Tenaya Capital. Sitting alongside Miller on its Board of Directors are Navin Chaddha, managing director of Mayfield Fund; Bill Gurley, general partner at Benchmark; Stewart Gollmer, managing director at Tenaya Capital; Matt Coffin, former CEO and founder of LowerMyBills.com; and Jason Kilar, former CEO and founder of Hulu.
To learn more about Brighter, visit or call 888.230.4717.
() is the first simple, free alternative to dental insurance, offering an unmatched level of price and quality transparency and savings. The service, which started in the Los Angeles region, provides self-pay patients free access to pre-negotiated prices at top local dentists, resulting in average savings of more than 50 percent. Founded by Internet entrepreneur Jake Winebaum, the service is backed by some of the world-s most respected investors including Mayfield Fund, Benchmark and Tenaya Capital.
Media Contact:
Melanie Murphy
310-883-2341
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