Startups focusing on women’s health are underfunded. That’s the premise behind SteelSky Ventures, a women-run venture firm that recently announced an inaugural $72 million fund for women’s health, backed by a list of big healthcare names, such as the American Hospital Association and pharma giant Eli Lilly.

The fund has already provided early-stage investments to 13 companies in the medical device, consumer health, digital health, e-pharmacy and retail therapeutics sectors. The firm says the new fund is world’s largest focused on women’s healthcare.

SteelSky is based in Atlanta, the home of founder and general partner Maria Velissaris. But the firm also has a presence in the Pacific Northwest. Fund analyst Georgia Cavanaugh is based in Seattle and managing partner Buffy Alegria is a Northwest native with a background in banking who lives in Yakima, Wash.

GeekWire interviewed Alegria about what inspired her to start the fund with Velissaris and the need for an investment vehicle focused on women’s health.

Women make the vast majority of healthcare decisions and on average spend much more than men on healthcare, Alegria said. Yet companies that specifically address women’s needs make up just 5% of all digital health funding since 2011, according to Rock Health. That percentage has been increasing, reaching 7% in the first eight months of 2021.

That shift may continue as more women investors come on board. Women still only make up 15% of general partners at venture capital firms, marking small progress — only 12% of women were general partners in 2019. Alegria and her colleagues are part of the change.

SteelSky’s portfolio includes digital-first company Origin, specializing in pelvic floor health, pregnancy, and postpartum care; AI-powered chronic care management company Lark; and Raydiant Oximetry, which is developing a fetal distress monitor.

Though SteelSky Ventures has not yet backed startups forged in the Pacific Northwest, several of its companies touch the region through their customer base or regional presence. The fund invests mostly in seed and Series A rounds.

Find out more in the interview with Alegria below, edited for clarity and brevity.

Read the full article about funding women's health by Charlotte Schubert at GeekWire.