The leading healthcare cloud computing platform and service provider ClearDATA Networks, Inc announced that it had raised USD14 million in its recent Series B funding round. The funding round was oversubscribed and saw the participation of investors including Merck Global Health Innovation Fund, Excel Venture Management and Norwest Venture Partners. The new funding also included a second closing of the round to accommodate the participation of Merck, which is ClearDATA's strategic investor.

According to TechCrunch, the new funding received by ClearDATA will equip the company with capital to increase its growth opportunities and sustain its momentum in the Health Information Technology (HIT) cloud computing market.

ClearDATA' services, according to a TechCrunch report, edges out other cloud service providers as healthcare cloud services and the platform itself should be HIPAA-compliant, which means that security of health data is important and should be as dictated by US law. ClearDATA currently serves more than 300,000 healthcare professionals. The company also hosts apps and data containing tens of millions of health records for various healthcare providers.

ClearDATA Chief Executive Officer Darin Brannan said, "The IT demands on healthcare organizations are greater than ever -- and they will continue to grow as Big Data and analytics take hold in the industry. Our investors recognize the escalating need for hosting and services in the cloud that can help these organizations reduce IT costs while improving productivity, reliability, security, regulatory compliance, business continuity and agility."

Merck investment principal Joe Volpe said, "ClearDATA has the potential to be an important data steward for protected health information in the health care industry. As the need to analyze vast amounts of data increases, 'Big Data' presents opportunities to improve patient health."

Norwest Venture Partners general partner Robert Abbott said about its participation in ClearDATA's latest funding round, "ClearDATA is addressing major issues in the healthcare industry by providing meaningful cost reductions and improving the manageability and security of healthcare data and applications."