Cigna Healthcare announced Monday that it has partnered with mental health company Headspace to provide digital support to its members.
The partnership, called Headspace for Cigna Healthcare, will be available to more than 7 million people starting Jan. 1 as part of Cigna's employer behavioral health offerings. Headspace was previously only an in-network provider of Cigna's coaching and therapy services, but the partnership now gives Cigna members access to their full suite of services.
The partnership will provide Cigna customers with exclusive access to customized content, such as support for stress, burnout and neurodivergence. Headspace is also able to provide clinical care navigation, referring members to in-network clinicians for a higher level of care when needed.
In addition, members have access to Headspace's digital mental health app which offers daily meditation, sleep radios, focus music, exercise, guided cognitive behavioral therapy programs, reflection and mood check-in tools. They can also use Headspace’s empathetic AI companion, Ebb, to help patients reflect on and organize their emotions. This is the first time Ebb is being offered through a national health scheme.
“Everyone deserves support before stress, anxiety and depression worsen or burnout occurs, but the real challenge is creating the right entry point for care,” Headspace CEO Tom Pickett said in a statement. “We partnered with Cigna Together, we address this issue by making mental health support more accessible, affordable and part of daily life. When people take action early, they experience better health outcomes and are less likely to need more intensive, expensive interventions. It’s a win-win for both members and the system.”
Jason Youngblood, senior director of behavioral health at Cigna Healthcare, said Cigna selected Headspace as a partner after conducting extensive research on mental health vendors, choosing the digital health company because of “a very good cultural fit.” He noted that Headspace's apps and programs are clinically proven and the company has more than 70 studies under its belt.
“They were willing to do more than just plug their app into our system and really make it a two-way referral, and that's why we chose them,” he said in an interview at the Behavioral Health Technology Conference in San Diego.
To track the success of Cigna Healthcare's Headspace, the insurance company will measure metrics such as engagement rates, the extent to which Headspace support members are using it, and how long they use the support.
According to a recent Cigna report, the prevalence of mental health conditions is rising and will increase by 20% from 2020 to 2024. Additionally, approximately 30% of employees struggle with anxiety. Youngblood said that by partnering with Headspace, Cigna's ultimate goal is to increase the number of people working in preventive mental health.
“We really want to move the industry to the next level where we're not just focused on reactive care, but really focused on engaging people in preventive care and giving them tools and resources that they enjoy and enjoy using,” he said.
Image: Benjavisa, Getty Images
