What’s wrong with healthcare is often discussed. And indeed, there is no shortage of challenges that the industry faces: healthcare disparities, provider burnout, rising costs, lack of access to effective care, you name it.
But at the Behavioral Health Tech conference in Phoenix on Wednesday, a different story emerged. Several mental health experts shared with MedCity News the areas where they see promise and progress. Here’s a glimpse of what’s giving them hope:
De-stigmatization of mental health
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Looking back even just a decade ago, mental health was rarely discussed. But that’s changing, and according to Dr. Debra Nussbaum, senior director of behavioral health at Optum, the healthcare industry has “successfully de-stigmatized” mental health. She gave the example of commercials Cigna released on wellness and emotional health in 2019.
“When have we ever seen that?” Nussbaum said. “I think that we’ve really done a good job bringing mental health to the forefront of discussions. It’s okay to say you’re in therapy, it’s okay to say you’re on meds. It shouldn’t be a crime. … I think that we’re not afraid of the topic anymore, and it’s not taboo. So that really gives me hope because now we can continue to have the conversation openly.”
The potential of AI
AI is still a relatively new technology, but it holds a lot of promise when it comes to improving mental health outcomes, according to Dr. Jenna Glover, chief clinical officer of mental health company Headspace.
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The company recently released an empathetic AI companion called Ebb, which helps users reflect and sort through their emotions. Headspace hopes to further leverage AI to support triaging people into the right care and alleviate providers’ administrative burdens.
“The system has been so overburdened in so many different ways of trying to get people into care, identifying people effectively, the burden on providers in terms of documentation, of getting reimbursement,” Glover said. “AI should really unlock a lot of that and maximize efficiency. It has to be done with a great deal of care, and I think we’re going to see people doing it really well, and then we’re going to see a lot of mistakes. I think we’re trying to create an infrastructure where we’re doing it well.”
Mental-physical health integration
Healthcare is incredibly siloed, but mental health can greatly affect physical health and vice versa. However, there is more conversation around integrating these silos, according to Nisha Desai, co-founder and COO of Anise Health. The company offers culturally-responsive digital mental health care for Asian Americans.
“Bringing mental health care into the primary care setting is a huge vision of mine for the industry,” Desai said. “I’ve heard it a lot in conversation here at the conference. So I think just us being able to identify what some of the big problems are, and seeing innovation come out to solve those problems, is inspiring to say the least.”
Startups addressing costly needs
There are many startups doing important work in mental health but are struggling to get paid for it, according to Ellen Herlacher, partner at LRVHealth. However, there are several startups that are “bucking this trend,” she added. These are companies that are effectively addressing costly conditions for payers, who are paying these startups a significant amount of money in return.
Herlacher gave several examples, including Nema Health, which offers online trauma therapy for post-traumatic stress disorder.
“Payers are willing to pay a lot, a high case rate for Nema that kind of corresponds to a high gross margin product, because it’s effective and because it offsets so many other costs that they have with these folks,” she said. “So the drug costs, the inpatient costs, the rehab costs, the ongoing outpatient costs. For every $10,000 they spend one time on Nema, they could be offsetting $20,000 a year of continuous medical, behavioral and pharma costs.”
Picture: Benjavisa, Getty Images
Editor’s note: This story is based on discussions at Behavioral Health Tech, a conference held this month in Phoenix. MedCity News reporters Katie Adams and Marissa Plescia were invited to attend and moderate sessions at the conference, and all their travel and related expenses were covered by Behavioral Health Tech. However, company officials had no input in editorial coverage.