Mantra Health Launches Managed Care Program in Response to Accelerating College Mental Health Crisis, Closing the Treatment Gap for Students with Evidence-Based Care

-- Penn State, St. John's University and Moravian College join growing list of U.S. schools partnering with Mantra Health to extend on-campus care teams with an integrated, telemental health program, powered by Mantra's Collaboration Portal, which enables seamless referrals and collaboration during the course of care

-- College mental health innovator's virtual Managed Care Program removes barriers to evidence-based psychiatry and therapy, helping participating schools give students continuity of care whether on campus, learning remotely or at home for seasonal breaks

-- College students receive care on their terms -- no wait list, evening and weekend appointments, virtual video Visits, 24/7 messaging, and access to self-care resources

News provided by

Mantra Health

Nov 17, 2020, 11:04 ET

NEW YORK, Nov. 17, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Mantra Health, a digital mental health provider focused on higher education, today launched its Managed Care Program, enabling colleges and universities to offer collaborative, closed-loop mental health services with continuity of care for students. Mantra Health uses telehealth technology to deliver evidence-based mental health treatment by integrating directly with on-campus counseling and health centers, with the mission of improving the mental health of young adults regardless of their physical location or ability to pay. The new Managed Care Program helps close the treatment gap at colleges and improve student outcomes by making it easier for schools to staff high quality mental health providers that can work across traditional daytime hours as well as evenings and weekends, aided by the flexibility of telehealth.

Rates of moderate to severe mental health conditions, including anxiety and depression, have been rising year over year in the college student population and related symptoms have increased considerably in US adults between April and June of 2020, compared to the same time the previous year. According to an August 2020 CDC survey, more than 1 in 4 young adults aged 18-24 reported having seriously considered suicide in the previous 30 days, a significantly higher rate compared to other demographics. Additionally, the coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the national shortage of mental health providers, putting vulnerable college students at risk with appointment backlogs keeping potentially life-saving medical treatment out of reach.

"Increased college student demand for mental healthcare contrasted with an on-campus shortage of providers is creating appointment wait times of up to several months. Meanwhile, off-campus referrals to local providers are expensive, inconvenient for students, and sometimes simply not available, especially at schools outside of major metropolitan areas," said Ed Gaussen, CEO and co-founder, Mantra Health. "These issues are posing a serious health risk to students. Schools need a quick and easy way to ramp up access to effective mental health treatment, while being kept in the loop on the progress of their students. That is what our new Managed Care Program offers."

How does Mantra Health work?

Mantra Health integrates with on-campus health and counseling centers, allowing on-campus providers to make referrals to both board-certified psychiatric specialists and licensed therapists affiliated with Mantra Health, as well as to collaborate on evidence-based treatment plans, coordinate the administration of care and track patient progress over time. Mantra Health's closed-loop digital care program blends telehealth technology with patient support services, ensuring that referred students remain engaged in treatment and don't fall through the cracks.

Through its virtual Managed Care Program, Mantra Health removes student access barriers to evidence-based psychiatry and therapy. Psychiatry providers working through Mantra Health can prescribe a range of a wide range of FDA-approved, non-controlled medications that have evidence treating symptoms of depression, anxiety and attention deficit disorder.

The Managed Care Program also features:

Evidence-Based Treatment + Closed-Loop Collaboration: Students benefit from the ability of on-campus care teams to collaborate directly with Mantra-affiliated providers through the Mantra Collaboration Portal, closely monitoring and tracking each student's progress. Results have revealed that in just four weeks of treatment, Mantra patients exceeded industry standards for significant clinical improvement as measured by evidence based depression and anxiety symptom scales (76% on the GAD-7, 55% on the PHQ-9,). These outcomes were sustained at 12 weeks.
Patient Support Team: Mantra patient advocates proactively reach out to students, providing encouragement and social support to stick with treatment, reduce no-show rates and ensure they don't fall through the cracks. In a recent partnership with New College of Florida, 100% of students on Mantra made it to their appointments for psychiatric care.
Continuity of Care: In as little as four weeks Mantra Health can get schools set up to allow students to continue seeing their licensed providers across state lines, as well as switch payment sources between the school and students. This avoids any interruptions to students' care and provides seamless transitions between remote learning, summer break or after graduation. Mantra Health's services are currently available in six states and will continue to expand as they partner with new schools that request access in surrounding states to accommodate their students.

"Mantra's Managed Care program introduces a new paradigm for collegiate mental health. By empowering on-campus providers with relevant treatment information and collaboration tools through our collaboration portal, we leapfrogged community providers and transactional telehealth options by delivering integrated, higher quality care," said Matt Kennedy, co-founder and COO, Mantra Health. "The ultimate beneficiary of our Managed Care program is students, who also have the option of continuing their mental healthcare with Mantra during summer and after graduating through our flexible payment options."

Mantra Health's full-stack telehealth platform powered by its proprietary EHR is the bedrock of the university and patient experience:

Mantra Health Collaboration Portal: For on-campus counselors to seamlessly refer students to Mantra-affiliated mental health providers who specialize in treating young adults, as well as to collaborate and coordinate evidence-based treatment plans and track student progress.
Mantra Health Student Portal: For students to conduct HIPAA-compliant video appointments, 24/7 messaging, access to educational self-management materials between sessions, and track their progress through evidence-based scales.

About Mantra Health

Mantra Health's mission is to improve the mental health of young adults by making evidence-based mental health services, including psychiatric specialty care, within reach of all colleges and universities. Mantra Health partners with institutions of higher education to respond to the campus mental health crisis, making sure young people navigate the transition to adulthood with the mental health support services they need. Mantra Health's innovative closed-loop telehealth platform makes evidence-based mental health services accessible and affordable by integrating directly with college and university health, wellness and counseling centers. Learn more about Mantra Health at MantraHealth.com.

Media Contact:
Nate Hermes or Laurel Getz
[email protected]

SOURCE Mantra Health