What You Should Know:
– Headway, a tech-enabled company that has built the easiest way for people to get quality in-network mental health care, announced it is available in California.
– Headway patients can attend a virtual or in-person appointment in as little as 48 hours, and on average patients attend their first appointment less than 6 days after online booking; this is compared to the national average of two to three weeks, if not months.
Mental Health Crisis in California
California is facing a growing mental health care crisis. According to Mental Health America’s “State of Mental Health in America” 2022 report, the state ranks 48th out of 50 states for “Adults with AMI (any mental illness) Who Did Not Receive Treatment.” The state has had regulations in place requiring that patients have access to an initial in-network mental health care appointment within 10 days; and since July 1, 2022 – with the implementation of CA SB221 – this 10-day requirement has been extended to follow-up appointments as well. While additional pressure is on insurance companies to get members timely care, across-the-state access within these timely windows is not the current reality. In contrast, across the country Headway patients attend their second appointment in just 7.6 days to support ongoing treatment.
“The mental health care crisis in California could happen anywhere, and is a reflection of our country’s broken system,” said Andrew Adams, founder and CEO, Headway. “At Headway, we are helping to fix this crisis by simultaneously solving the barriers faced by providers, health plans, and the patients they serve. Headway’s ground-breaking solution supports all stakeholders, enabling patients to receive timely mental health care that takes their insurance.”
In just 30 days, Headway has built a robust network of high-quality providers across the state who are credentialed with select insurance providers. The California network is nearly 60% non-white, with 30% of providers fluent in a language other than English, such as Spanish, Mandarin, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Korean, Armenian and more. Moreover, 25% of providers support LGBTQIA+ needs, and 15% of the network identifies as Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI). Headway’s search platform headway.co is the easiest way for patients to find and immediately book an appointment on the calendar of a the right in-network provider, matched based on the patient’s demographic, cultural, geographic preferences, and clinical needs.
Current Coverage Markets
Headway currently operates in 14 more states including the District of Columbia, and is powering more than 2.5 million appointments annually. This year, the company has announced partnerships with some of the nation’s biggest providers including Empire BlueCross BlueShield, Carefirst BlueCross BlueShield, and BlueCross NC, helping to scale their mental health care programs.
