Latest News
Sword Health Appoints Tech Veteran David Cohen as Chief Revenue Officer
Bringing his strong growth stage to public market company leadership, Cohen will lead company’s commercial team, to further accelerate industry-leading sales and client success performance New York, July 9, 2024—Sword Health, the pioneer of AI Care, which makes clinical-grade, life-changing care accessible to everyone, everywhere, today announced the appointment of David Cohen as Chief Revenue Officer. In his role, Cohen will lead the company’s commercial team, which includes all sales and client success functions, working closely with the leadership team to further accelerate the company’s growth in pursuit of their mission of freeing two billion people from pain. Cohen brings more than 20 years of experience in the technology industry, spending the majority of his career at LinkedIn where he held leadership roles across multiple continents, having most recently served as VP of North America, Talent Solutions at LinkedIn where he was responsible for the go-to-market team in North America and grew the business from $600 million to $3 billion during his time in the role.
July 9, 2024 • 2 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Introducing Atlas: a new pain-fighting solution from Sword
Immediately available in 150 countries, the new solution is designed to advance DE&I efforts by creating equitable access to benefits for every part of an international workforce New York, November 29, 2023—Globally, billions of people suffer from acute and chronic pain, which is a leading cause of absenteeism and low productivity, all while costing healthcare systems more than cancer and diabetes combined. Despite being the world’s most prevalent disability, only a tiny fraction of people have access to the care and resources they need to help them feel better.
November 30, 2023 • 3 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Sword Health and Employer Direct Healthcare partnership
The companies will integrate systems to create a seamless experience to improve patient care as well as reduce complexity and costs DALLAS AND NEW YORK, November 8, 2023—Employer Direct Healthcare (EDH), whose SurgeryPlus® solution is the leading high performance specialty network for surgical care nationwide, and Sword Health, the first and only end-to-end platform to predict, prevent, and treat pain, are announcing a new, highly integrated partnership that will deliver a complete solution to musculoskeletal (MSK) care, from conservative care to surgical care for those who need it. As part of this partnership, Sword is introducing a solution specifically to support cancer patients during and after treatment, which is exclusively launching with EDH. The new Sword solution will focus on recovering mobility and strength, aiming to improve function and quality of life, and alleviate psychological distress for those patients. Through this partnership, the companies will build a first-of-its-kind system integration that will make use of the two companies’ solutions for a truly seamless experience for clients and members. Clients will be able to purchase the integrated solution on a single contract, or add services to any existing contract with a simple order form, including both EDH’s surgery and cancer solutions and Sword’s full range of products, including Digital Physical Therapy, the cancer-centric program, Bloom (women’s pelvic health), Move, Academy, Predict, and On-Call. Members proceeding through a care journey will benefit from automated referrals, technological integrations, and jointly managed care across both virtual and in-person modalities, all of which combine to improve patient care as well as reduce complexity and costs.
November 9, 2023 • 4 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Costco Health Solutions partners with Sword to improve member health outcomes
NEW YORK, October 2, 2023 – Sword Health, the world’s first and only end-to-end platform to predict, prevent, and treat pain, has partnered with Costco Health Solutions (CHS), Costco’s pharmacy benefits arm, to promote high-quality solutions that will improve the lives of their respective members. Together, the companies are working to encourage people to seek alternative solutions for pain, like Sword’s digital physical therapy platform. Also, with the rise of the popularity of GLP-1 medications for weight loss, the companies are encouraging lifestyle changes by offering access to Sword Move. Since 2020, Sword members have completed more than 27 million minutes of physical therapy and, with the freedom to complete their sessions anywhere, have avoided about 1.8 million trips to in-person rehab clinics. After completing Sword programs: “This partnership shows how two disruptive companies can work together to encourage positive lifestyle changes,” said Virgilio Bento, founder & CEO, Sword Health. “This is a testament to the impact and results of our platform in treating pain, promoting health and reducing healthcare costs.”
October 2, 2023 • 3 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
How Sword became one of the fastest-growing companies in America
Inc. magazine just ranked Sword Health #26 on its annual Inc. 5000 list, the most prestigious ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in the U.S. Since launching commercially in 2020, we have been strategically expanding the scope of our business as we work towards our goal of freeing 2 billion people from pain. By reimagining how patients access and receive care for all types of physical pain, we can create a pain-free world—an audacious goal, to be sure. But the pursuit of audacious goals is Sword’s ethos. It’s what got us here, and what will keep us going—and growing. Keep reading to learn how Sword Health achieved such rapid growth during our first three years in the market, how we’ve positively impacted our clients and members, and what our future holds.
August 16, 2023 • 8 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Dave Guilmette joins Sword Health’s Board of Directors
Fortune 50 healthcare executive brings decades of experience from Aon, Cigna and more to the high-growth health tech startup NEW YORK – August 9, 2023 – Sword Health, the world’s first end-to-end platform to predict, prevent and treat pain, today announced the appointment of global healthcare leader Dave Guilmette to its board of directors. As a seasoned CEO, president and board director, Guilmette brings more than three decades of industry leading expertise to the $2 billion startup. His track record of driving positive change throughout the industry aligns with Sword’s disruptive mission and growth trajectory. “We believe Dave’s industry expertise, proven leadership, and strategic vision, coupled with his genuine desire to help free people from pain, will play a crucial role in helping us deliver on our mission and continue our strong growth trajectory,” said Virgílio Bento, CEO and Founder of Sword. “Of all the things someone as talented as Dave could do with his precious time, I’m honored that he would choose to invest it in Sword and I couldn’t be more delighted to work alongside him.”
August 9, 2023 • 3 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Sword Health partners with the National Labor Alliance to advance care
National Labor Alliance of Health Care Coalitions (NLA) will offer the Sword Health platform to its eight million members following comprehensive review of the market. NEW YORK & HARTFORD, Conn. – July 19, 2023 – Sword Health, the world’s first end-to-end platform to predict, prevent and treat pain, today received the endorsed partner distinction from the National Labor Alliance of Health Care Coalitions (NLA), North America’s largest alliance of labor unions and labor management coalitions, to make its platform for treating pain easy to access for the 20 US coalitions and international unions as well as the thousands of health funds in the NLA. While 60% of adults will experience serious physical pain this year, it is an even more serious issue for labor members, who frequently sacrifice their physical health for jobs that are critical to the economy, taking on injuries and chronic pain. Now, the more than eight million members of the unions and coalitions under the NLA will have easy access to Sword, which provides clinical-grade treatment proven to be as effective as the best in-person treatment.
July 19, 2023 • 4 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Sword Health Announces Appointment of Beverly Anderson to Board of Directors
Proven executive brings public company board and top financial institution experience to the health tech startup as it continues to see unprecedented growth. NEW YORK – June 8, 2023 – Sword Health, the world’s first end-to-end platform to predict, prevent and treat pain, today announced the appointment of esteemed executive Beverly Anderson to its board of directors. In addition to her personal passion for Sword’s mission, to free people from pain, Anderson brings a career’s worth of leadership experience from the world’s leading financial institutions. “We are honored to welcome Beverly to the Sword Board of Directors,” said Virgílio Bento, CEO and Founder of Sword. “Her extraordinary breadth of experience, bold and strategic leadership philosophy, and genuine desire to achieve a demonstrable impact on society make her the perfect fit, and I am looking forward to working closely with Beverly as we continue to serve our members and pursue our mission to free the world from pain.”
June 8, 2023 • 3 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Sword Health Launches World’s First Platform to Predict, Prevent and Treat Pain
Platform marks major step forward in company’s mission to free 2 billion people from pain by providing infinite custom care pathways for each member’s unique pain challenges NEW YORK – May 31, 2023 – Today, Sword Health, the world’s fastest growing pain solution, is announcing the launch of its platform to predict, prevent and treat pain. With its products now used by members of more than 2,500 companies across three continents, Sword is turning everything it has learned about making optimal clinical-grade treatments more accessible into a single platform that can help people avoid and treat the pain that afflicts 60% of adults each year according to the CDC. “The world has been trying to solve pain for the last 2,000 years and after all that time, the best the healthcare industry has to offer is to ‘manage it.’ They even call the field ‘pain management.’ But science has shown us that we can do better - that pain can truly be treated as well as prevented so that it doesn’t have to be a burden people carry for their whole lives,” said Virgilio Bento, Founder and CEO of Sword Health. “Within the 60% of adults who experience significant physical pain each year, there are infinite journeys and unique experiences. To help all of them, it requires an entire platform, and that’s what Sword is becoming.”
May 31, 2023 • 6 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Quantum Health chooses Sword to improve MSK care and reduce costs
Partnership works to meet growing employer demand by combining Sword Health’s pain prediction, prevention and treatment platform with Quantum Health’s leading navigation and care coordination platform DUBLIN, OH and NEW YORK, NY (May 23, 2023) – Quantum Health, the leading consumer healthcare navigation and care coordination company, announced today the expansion of its current musculoskeletal (MSK) offering with the addition of Sword Health as a new Preferred Partner within its Comprehensive Care Solutions™ platform. Sword Health is the world’s first end-to-end platform to predict, prevent and treat pain and, with this partnership, Quantum Health will make Sword available to its members. Quantum Health will be the first partner to offer Sword Move to members, which combines data from users’ wearable devices with a dedicated personal trainer to deliver personalized exercise programs, and will also offer Sword Predict and Bloom. Predict is the industry’s first AI engine using advanced machine learning to identify members at a great risk of needing surgery, while Bloom is a comprehensive and clinical-grade digital solution to address women's physical health issues.
May 23, 2023 • 6 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Sword Health Appoints Beth Stevens as Chief Legal Officer
NEW YORK — May 1, 2023 — Sword Health, the world’s first end-to-end platform to predict, prevent and treat pain, today announced the appointment of Beth Stevens as Chief Legal Officer. In her role, Beth will lead the company’s legal team and oversee regulatory initiatives, working closely with the rest of the leadership team to grow the company and pursue their mission of freeing two billion people from pain. "We are thrilled to welcome Beth to Sword as we aggressively pursue our mission of freeing people from pain within this highly regulated and complex industry. Beth is uniquely positioned to take on this role as she has served as the General Counsel for several hyper-growth companies operating in highly regulated categories and we are excited to benefit from her leadership across our team," said Virgílio Bento, CEO and Founder of Sword Health. "Adding Beth to the leadership team is an essential step toward our company’s future and will be invaluable in helping us serve our members and free the world from pain." Beth was most recently with ONE, a consumer fintech company backed by Ribbit Capital and Walmart. From 2016 until 2021, she led Opendoor’s legal and compliance teams as Head of Legal; was General Counsel of Earnest, a fintech lender; and served as General Counsel at Sidecar, an early ride share company. Prior to going in house, she worked at Paul Hastings, Orrick, and Booz Allen Hamilton. Beth has an undergraduate degree in Economics from Northwestern University, an MBA from Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, and a JD from Northwestern University School of Law.
May 1, 2023 • 4 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Sharecare selects Sword as its preferred digital MSK care partner
April 13, 2023 – NEW YORK – Sword Health, the world’s first and only end-to-end platform to prevent, treat, and eliminate pain announced today that it has been selected to be the preferred musculoskeletal (MSK) partner for Sharecare (NASDAQ: SHCR), the digital health company that helps people manage all their health in one place. Building on the companies’ mutual commitment to provide superior, meaningful user experiences with continued focus on return-on-investment, Sword Health is available for large employers and health plans to seamlessly integrate digital physical therapy into their benefits offerings through Sharecare’s award-winning platform. While MSK issues primarily impact the joints, being in pain brings a host of other issues such as anxiety, depression, fear avoidance, decreased productivity at work, and more. Yet traditional in-clinic physical therapy isn’t always a desirable or convenient option for those who need MSK pain relief most. Meanwhile, digital physical therapy makes it possible to receive clinical-grade physical therapy from anywhere while solving for other problems, including improving sleep and emotional health, reducing the need for surgery, slashing medical costs, and enhancing productivity, among other benefits. Through Sword Health, Sharecare’s customers can provide their populations with virtual access to physical therapists that maintain the same clinical rigor as an in-clinic program, while giving them greater flexibility – which not only improves adherence but also increases access to treatment for historically underserved patient populations. “At Sharecare, we have purpose-built our robust partner program to ensure deep integration of best-in-class, clinically validated digital therapeutics, enabling a highly personalized and seamless user experience for individuals while alleviating vendor fatigue for our customers,” said Dr. Jud Brewer, Chief Medical Officer of Sharecare. “We selected Sword Health as our preferred partner for digital MSK because of its clinical rigor, member-centered care programs, innovative use of technology, proven ROI, and commitment to advancing health equity – all of which aligns with Sharecare’s mission.”
April 14, 2023 • 5 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Introducing Predict — a New AI Solution to Predict and Prevent Unnecessary Surgeries
Sword Predict is a new solution that uses artificial intelligence to help reduce unnecessary surgeries by intervening earlier and saving the average Fortune 500 company millions annually on their #1 healthcare cost. Today we’re announcing Predict, the first AI engine using advanced machine learning to identify members who are up to 40x more likely to have surgery, more than 8 months before a decision has been made to operate, to help them avoid unnecessary and costly hip, knee, and back surgeries. With Predict, Sword Health can use a wide range of healthcare and demographic data to identify, engage and treat members who are at-risk for needing surgery with digital physical therapy, which is proven to reduce surgery intent by 60 percent. Predict will dramatically change how companies – including health plans, employers and labor unions – not only avoid costly surgeries and related impacts, such as time off from work, but also enable healthy, pain-free living without invasive surgeries and fears surrounding resulting opioid usage.
March 28, 2023 • 3 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Forbes Honors Sword in Best Startup Employers 2023
We are thrilled to announce that Sword Health has been named to Forbes' fifth annual list of "America's Best Startup Employers 2023." Ranked at number 90 overall and 6th among health companies, we are honored to be recognized among the top startup companies in the United States that are dedicated to creating a positive workplace environment for our employees. Forbes' list of "America's Best Startup Employers 2023" is based on a survey of over 2,600 American employers, conducted by market research firm Statista. The survey measured a range of factors including employer reputation, employee satisfaction, and growth. At Sword Health, we’re on a mission to free 2 billion people from pain, and we know that it takes a great team to accomplish that goal. We take great pride in our supportive and engaging workplace culture. Our team is made up of passionate individuals who are dedicated to our mission. From our partnerships with customers to the experience and products with create for our members, we approach everything we do with honesty, responsibility, and competence. Ultimately, this is the fuel that powers our mission and distinguishes our unmatched approach to radical human-centric care.
March 10, 2023 • 2 min read
Sword Health Innovation Team
Fresh health insights
Ultimate employee benefits guide
Employee benefits aren’t just perks. In 2025, they’re a strategic lever. With rising healthcare costs, increased workforce expectations, and the permanent shift toward hybrid work, your benefits strategy isn’t just a retention tool. If you can offer the best employee benefits in your industry, you send a strong message to potential candidates (and to your existing team members). This demonstrates your company values and your bottom line. A strong employee benefits plan signals care, financial strength, and a commitment to invest in your team. A forward-looking benefits plan is a competitive advantage. It influences recruiting outcomes, impacts employee health and productivity, and shapes how your organization is perceived. We want to help you understand the full landscape of a modern benefits plan including what’s most common, and emerging trends. But what really matters is attracting and retaining top talent. This guide will focus on the most cost-effective benefits to achieve that organizational goal.
October 24, 2025 • 19 min read
Sword Editorial Team
Healthcare cost trends for 2026
Healthcare costs are rising again, and health insurance providers are feeling the pressure. After a brief slowdown at the start of the year across the macro industry, costs have continued to push higher on the back of inflation, new drug therapies, and pent-up utilization. Most benefits leaders already know the headlines, like trend lines above 7 percent and specialty drug spend surging, but what they need now are answers. Not all of this is beyond your control. Healthcare leaders can consider these broader trends to update their plans. This guide will explain the key trends impacting the industry in more detail, but the foundations of cost-effective plans are increasingly built on prevention, digital access, and value-based partnerships that drive measurable ROI. We've pulled together a high-level overview of the key trends shaping the cost basis of healthcare in 2026 and beyond. Read on to find what you need to know about the reasons for these trends, and the practical steps you can take to stay ahead.
October 10, 2025 • 8 min read
Sword Editorial Team
GLP-1 muscle loss: the hidden cost of weight loss without movement
Early indications show the drugs are helping patients lose weight. But as more research and analysis is collected, concern around GLP-1 muscle loss is building. While GLP-1s promote fast weight loss, the type of weight lost matters. Clinical research shows that up to 39% of lean body mass is lost during GLP-1 usage. Lean muscle loss from GLP-1 use presents an invisible but dangerous risk, for health insurers and patients alike. Lean muscle loss isn’t cosmetic. This has serious implications for physical health, mobility, long-term function, and cost exposure. For health plan administrators sarcopenia muscle loss adds nearly $900 in excess healthcare costs per employee annually. Lean muscle is essential. Lose it, and you compromise strength, movement, and future health.
August 22, 2025 • 14 min read
Morgan Hollis, MS, RDN
