When it comes to taking bets on what’s next in healthcare, investors are often the ones calling the shots. Hemant Taneja, managing director of General Catalyst, has sat in the driver’s seat on some of the biggest digital health deals. His firm has invested in a number of digital health companies, from behavioral health company Mindstrong to fitness startup Tempo. But perhaps Taneja’s is best known for his investing in chronic care startup Livongo.

Over the summer, the digital health world was abuzz with news that Livongo was scooped up by Teladoc in a historic $18.5 million merger. As lead investor, Taneja had a front-row seat to the evolution of the company. In fact, he and Livongo founder Glen Tullman sat down together and developed a business plan.

A new report from PitchBook projects solid growth in the industry, but also notes challenges in exits. Women’s health startups are starting to garner a lot of attention. However, a new report out of PitchBook found that the industry is still struggling to catch the attention of VCs, and has produced few exits.

“Only six femtech exits were completed in 2019; however, this still represents a 64% increase in exit value compared to 2018. The largest exits in recent years include Progyny’s (NASDAQ: PGNY) $130.0 million IPO and Procter & Gamble’s (NYSE: PG) acquisition of This Is L. for $100.0 million. Progyny’s stock has roughly doubled in the eight months since it went public,” the report reads.

Still, the authors of the report said that they see Femtech has a “solid growth outlook,” since there’s still many unmet needs in women’s health where tech could help.

As for funding, the report calculated that in 2019 femtech companies scored $592.1 million. That was down slightly from 2018’s $620.3 million. So far, in 2020, PitchBook recorded 57 deals and $376.2 million in venture dollars.

The novel coronavirus represents a global pandemic the likes of which haven’t been seen for roughly a century, and has put enormous pressures on the healthcare system and the economy alike.

To date the World Health Organization reports 209,839 confirmed cases and 8,778 deaths due to the virus. Healthcare providers and government agencies have scrambled to find ways to treat and stop the spread of the disease.

Digital health has quickly come onto the world stage – with telemedicine acting as a substitute for in-person visits, and chatbots filling in for nurse triage lines. However, like the rest of the world, the industry still faces an unknown financial future.

The pandemic has also caused major economic ripples. With the bulk of shops, restaurants and bars closed in the United States, the country could be facing soaring unemployment rates within the next year. Additionally, yesterday the stock market closed at a three-year low.

So what does the healthcare demand and the shaky financial footing mean for health tech startups? MobiHealthNews spoke to digital health investors, stakeholders and consultants about what the coronavirus will mean for startup investment, as well as about the opportunity and responsibility to contribute to this global crisis.