Joseph Kitonga

I immigrated from Kenya to Philadelphia at 13 when my family won the lottery. My father, a teacher in Kenya, cashed out his pension to buy one-way tickets for us to come to the U.S. We arrived with just our suitcases, each other, and not much else, moving into a small basement apartment in inner-city Philadelphia. Living in a city where just five miles can mean a twenty-year difference in life expectancy, I saw early how unequal access to care shapes people’s lives. My parents worked tirelessly, bootstrapping a home care business from nothing. I saw firsthand the sacrifices they made to support our family and the struggles their employees faced. Many were hourly workers who earned too much for Medicaid but too little to afford comprehensive health insurance. Even when my parents offered to cover half of the premiums, most could not afford to opt in. Without coverage, they often relied on the ER for preventable health issues, which led to delayed care and worse outcomes. Determined to change that reality, I dropped out of Penn State as a Thiel Fellow to build Vitable Health with the mission to give hourly and blue-collar workers and the small businesses that employ them access to affordable, high-quality care. We combine ICHRA administration with direct primary care, delivering virtual visits, over 1,000 prescriptions, and more than 40 lab tests for free with no copays or deductibles. We manage the entire experience, from onboarding and plan selection to high-touch care employees actually use. When I am not building Vitable, you might find me savoring a Philly cheesesteak, strumming my guitar, or taking long walks along the Philadelphia waterfront.