For millions of Americans, starting an antidepressant is a well-documented clinical process. Stopping one, however, is often a lonely and poorly supported journey, left to the patient to navigate with a pill cutter and hope. Outro, a New York-based healthcare technology company founded in 2022, is building a virtual care service around that precise, and often painful, transition. Its bet is that medically supervised deprescribing,starting with antidepressants,is not just a clinical niche but a necessary standard of care, one that can be delivered safely at scale through a dedicated clinician network and a specific tapering protocol.
The company announced a combined $7 million in pre-seed and seed funding in October 2026 to expand its reach [Morningstar, October 2026]. The round drew participation from a mix of venture firms including Listen Ventures, Cake Ventures, Jason Calacanis's LAUNCH, and Hannah Grey VC [Citybiz, October 2026]. For Outro's founders, the capital is fuel to address what they see as a systemic failure in mental health treatment: the lack of structured support for patients who wish to reduce or discontinue long-term psychiatric medication.
The Clinical Wedge: Hyperbolic Tapering
Outro's flagship service, called Taper Management, connects patients with clinicians who develop personalized plans for gradually reducing antidepressant doses [MobiHealthNews, October 2026]. The core of its approach is a method known as hyperbolic tapering, a protocol developed by co-founder Dr. Mark Horowitz. Instead of cutting doses in large, linear steps, hyperbolic tapering involves progressively smaller reductions as the dose approaches zero, which research suggests can minimize withdrawal symptoms [Reddit, October 2022]. Dr. Horowitz's work on this method has influenced national guidelines, including those from the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the UK [Reddit, October 2022].
The service, which starts at $125 per month, includes an initial clinical evaluation, ongoing monitoring, dose adjustments, and support [Wired, June 2025]. For patients requiring very small, precise doses not commercially available, Outro facilitates access to custom-compounded medications. This combination of protocol, clinical oversight, and pharmaceutical logistics forms the company's initial product moat.
The Team Behind the Protocol
The founding team blends deep clinical research with commercial healthcare experience. Dr. Mark Horowitz serves as the scientific anchor; he is a psychiatric researcher affiliated with University College London and the UK's National Health Service, whose published work on antidepressant withdrawal appears in journals like The Lancet Psychiatry and JAMA Psychiatry [outro.com]. His co-founders bring operational heft. CEO Brandon Goode previously worked in market access and strategic partnerships at Novo Nordisk and at the psychedelic-therapy company Field Trip Health. The third co-founder, Tyler Dyck, is also a Field Trip Health alumnus, bringing financial and operational experience from the mental health space [Wired, June 2025].
| Founder | Role | Key Background |
|---|---|---|
| Dr. Mark Horowitz | Co-Founder | Psychiatric researcher, developer of hyperbolic tapering protocol. |
| Brandon Goode | Co-Founder & CEO | Former market access at Novo Nordisk and Field Trip Health. |
| Tyler Dyck | Co-Founder | Former finance roles at Field Trip Health and HelloFresh Canada. |
This mix is deliberate. It pairs the credibility of peer-reviewed science with the go-to-market experience needed to build a sustainable clinical service in the complex U.S. healthcare landscape.
Traction and Geographic Rollout
Outro launched its antidepressant tapering service in seven states in May 2025: New York, California, Colorado, Texas, Florida, Washington, and Illinois [prweb.com, May 2025]. By the time of its October 2026 funding announcement, the service was available in 14 states, though the company has not publicly named the additional seven [Citybiz, October 2026]. This measured, state-by-state expansion is typical for telehealth companies navigating varying licensure requirements for clinicians.
The company go-to-market appears focused on direct-to-consumer outreach, though the funding announcement also referenced plans for partnerships with universities and advocacy groups [Morningstar, October 2026]. A Head of Growth role was posted on a venture job board in July 2026, signaling an intent to build out its acquisition and scaling capabilities [Lionheart Ventures job board, July 2026].
The Competitive and Regulatory Landscape
Outro operates in a space with few named, dedicated competitors, but it faces significant structural challenges. The primary competition is the status quo: patients attempting to taper on their own or with a primary care physician who may have limited time or specific training in deprescribing. The risks for Outro are multifaceted.
- Clinical liability. Guiding patients through medication changes, especially for conditions like depression, carries inherent medical risk. Outro's model relies on its clinician network and protocols to mitigate this, but adverse outcomes are a constant concern in any clinical service.
- Reimbursement complexity. At $125 per month, the service is an out-of-pocket expense for most. Scaling beyond a self-pay audience would require navigating insurance reimbursement, a notoriously slow and difficult process for new care models.
- Protocol adoption. While Dr. Horowitz's research is influential, hyperbolic tapering is not yet a universal standard. Convincing the broader medical community,and potential partner health systems,of its necessity is an ongoing educational challenge.
The company's answer to these risks is its focused expertise and capital-efficient virtual model. By specializing exclusively in deprescribing and controlling the care protocol, it aims to demonstrate superior outcomes that could eventually justify insurance coverage or institutional partnerships.
The Road Ahead for Deprescribing
The $7 million in new capital is earmarked for expanding the clinician network, applying AI to clinical workflows, and extending tapering services into additional drug classes beyond antidepressants [Morningstar, October 2026]. This planned expansion hints at a broader ambition to become a platform for managed deprescribing across psychiatry.
For now, the focus remains on the specific disease state of antidepressant dependence and the patient population of adults seeking to reduce or discontinue SSRIs and similar medications. The standard of care today for these patients is often fragmented. It might involve a brief conversation with a prescriber, followed by a recommendation to cut pills in half over a few weeks. For those experiencing severe withdrawal,sometimes misdiagnosed as a relapse of depression,the options are scarce. Outro is betting that a dedicated, protocol-driven service can become the new default for this vulnerable transition, turning a haphazard and often distressing process into a supported clinical pathway.
Sources
- [Morningstar, October 2026] Outro Announces $7M in Funding to Expand Access to Safe Deprescribing | https://www.morningstar.com/news/business-wire/20261008574189/outro-announces-7m-in-funding-to-expand-access-to-safe-deprescribing-starting-with-antidepressants
- [Citybiz, October 2026] Outro Raises $7 Million to Expand Antidepressant Deprescribing Platform | https://www.citybiz.co/article/916074/outro-raises-7-million-to-expand-antidepressant-deprescribing-platform
- [Wired, June 2025] ‘Uber for Getting Off Antidepressants’ Launches in the US | https://www.wired.com/story/tapering-off-anti-depressants-outro-telehealth/
- [MobiHealthNews, October 2026] Outro raises $7M for antidepressant tapering | https://www.mobihealthnews.com/news/outro-raises-7m-antidepressant-tapering
- [prweb.com, May 2025] Outro launches antidepressant tapering service in seven U.S. states | https://www.prweb.com/releases/outro-launches-antidepressant-tapering-service-in-seven-us-states-302134816.html
- [Reddit, October 2022] AskScience AMA Series with Dr. Mark Horowitz | https://www.reddit.com/r/askscience/comments/yc89rq/askscience_ama_series_im_dr_mark_horowitz_and_i/
- [outro.com] Dr. Mark Horowitz biography and research | https://www.outro.com/about/bio/mark-horowitz-md-phd
- [Lionheart Ventures job board, July 2026] Head of Growth posting for Outro Health