The United States saw an exacerbation of its mental health crisis during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. That crisis continues today, among people of all ages. The entire family feels the impact when one or more members have a behavioral health condition.
What affects the household also affects the workplace through a ripple effect.1 Forward-thinking employers have an opportunity to rethink how their employees and dependents receive mental health care.
At Highmark, our employees are also our members and have access to the same services as our clients. Jamie, a Highmark product manager, took advantage of our Mental Well-Being benefit. She got help for herself first and then for her husband and children.
Jamie was navigating the stress of being a working mother with two neurodivergent children, ages 9 and 12. She understood the value of the Mental Well-Being offering through her work here. Jamie engaged with certified coaches to better understand her competing priorities and the emotional demands of caregiving.
Her coach also helped her reframe the importance of self-care. "I feel so much better," she says. "You need to take care of yourself before you can take care of others." Based on her success, Jamie encouraged her husband to try talk therapy for his parenting concerns.
Jamie also obtained treatment for her sons. Their care was personalized to their unique individual needs, just like mom and dad's treatment. "Mental Well-Being Powered by Spring Health made a difference for all of us — not just one person," says Jamie.
Watch how Jamie and her family got support from Highmark's Mental Well-Being solution.
A recent study about pediatric mental health shows that access to care is a significant barrier for 20% of families.2 Barriers include out-of-pocket costs and a limited number of providers and appointments in the local area. Families may also have challenges finding transportation and/or getting time away from work.
Our Mental Well-Being solution stands out for its ability to provide quick access to mental health professionals. Jamie’s younger son was easily able to get an appointment when she wanted a second opinion on his mental health medications. "The Spring Health psychiatrist gave us so much information in just one session," says Jamie.
In addition to improved medication management, Jamie's son also got help in moving from virtual care to in-person visits. "His therapist facilitated a seamless move," explains Jamie. "We also created a plan for arranging an Individualized Education Program with his school."
Jamie's experience highlights what's possible when mental health care is accessible and coordinated for the whole family. Highmark's Mental Well-Being solution brings together coaching, therapy, psychiatry, medication management, and care navigation into one connected experience.
This approach helps remove common barriers like long wait times, administrative complexity, and uncertainty about where to start. Our provider matching tools ensure that members and their families find clinicians tailored to specific needs.
Mental Well-Being, which is part of every Highmark Well360 health plan, meets families where they are with virtual or in-person visits. "It took the guesswork out of finding the right care," Jamie says. "What used to feel exhausting became really easy."
Offering family mental health benefits is an investment in creating a culture of wellness that can help:
Care is fast, flexible, and available to children as young as age 6. Services are specialized for different kinds of behavioral health conditions like anxiety, depression, fear, substance use disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Contact your Highmark account manager or broker to learn how our Mental Well-Being solution can support your employees and their families.
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All references to "Highmark" in this communication are references to Highmark Inc., an independent licensee of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, and/or to one or more of its affiliated Blue companies.
Spring Health is an independent company that provides mental health care services through its agents. Spring Health does not provide Blue Cross and/or Blue Shield products or services. Spring Health is solely responsible for their mental health care services.
1 The Kids Mental Health Foundation. Research. Ripple Effect. https://www.kidsmentalhealthfoundation.org/about/research/ripple-effect
2 JAMA Network. JAMA Pediatrics. New Online. Research Letter. US Child Mental Health Care Need, Unmet Needs, and Difficulty Accessing Services. https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamapediatrics/article-abstract/2844987
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