Inside the collapse of a disrupter: How Haven’s high hopes of redefining health care came to a crashing halt

The dissolution of Haven marks one of the most stunning collapses in modern health care history. The venture, led by Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan Chase, was heralded immediately as a powerful new player to watch. Its January 2018 launch erased billions of dollars in value from health care companies within seconds. Even before it had a name, the company spawned a trade secrets lawsuit from the rival health care giant Optum.

All that anticipation came crashing down Monday with the news that Haven was shutting its doors, leaving the $3.5 trillion health care industry to ask how it could have failed so spectacularly.

A STAT examination, based on interviews with experts in health care business, finance, and technology, found that Haven’s dissolution is the product of a poorly defined mission, a series of strategic blunders and, in the end, a failure to show measurable progress toward a goal that would rally support for its cause and retain talent on its team.

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