How people seek and access mental health care was forever changed by the pandemic. In a market flooded with new care delivery methods – it is worth considering what capabilities are required for durability and longevity. We spoke with leadership from Grow Therapy, a national behavioral health provider group and technology company, about reaching an inflection point in mental health where quality and value-orientation need to be prioritized, in addition to improving access. 

1. Equitable, affordable access to high-quality behavioral health care is the goal. What tangible steps is Grow taking to make this vision a reality?

Manoj: At Grow, we are rooted in the belief that everyone should be able to afford behavioral health care. Grow assembled an expert team and designed highly effective revenue cycle management. This enables us to bill private and government health plans, making therapy and psychiatry more affordable than self-pay. It also provides the means to invest in our providers. Grow clinicians have access to world-class quality improvement programs, marketing support to grow their practices and tooling that gives routine and actionable feedback about their clients’ engagement and treatment progress. 

Cynthia: This provider-centric approach to innovation pays off, with more than 90% of clinicians preferring Grow over other behavioral telehealth systems. Grow’s provider Net Promoter Score (NPS) is 88, which is considered “excellent” on a scale of -100 to 100. Our provider retention rate is 90%. When we take care of providers, they’re able to do a better job taking care of their clients. Our client NPS is 85 and more than 80% return for multiple visits. 

2. How is Grow Therapy integrating measurement informed care (MIC) into its clinical practices and what does that mean for your client, provider and health plan stakeholders? 

Cynthia: Grow’s MIC infrastructure uses evidence-based measures to gauge symptoms and treatment progress. We provide a level of clarity that is standard in physical health care but has been historically lacking in behavioral health. For example, keeping track and bringing visibility to improvements in depression and anxiety can motivate clients, so we collect and analyze PHQ-9 and GAD-7 responses throughout their therapy or psychiatry journey and share those findings with clients and their providers.

Manoj: We can only manage what we can measure, and there is still immense progress to be made in behavioral health. 75% of Americans believe behavioral health issues are identified and treated less effectively than physical health, according to a West Health and Gallup survey from February 2024. Better measurement will help us understand root causes, making them inherently more solvable. It also allows us to align outcomes with payment, incentivizing providers to close care gaps.

3. Changing the payment paradigm has been tough across the board, but progress has been particularly slow in behavioral health. How is Grow going to change that dynamic?

Manoj: There are two essential ingredients for innovative reimbursement models. One is demonstrable outcomes measured through data and analytic capabilities. The other is payor and provider alignment on how those outcomes impact payment. The former is a strength of Grow’s and the latter is an active collaboration underway with many of our payor partners. When we enter into value-based agreements, we incentivize quality care and clinical outcomes to achieve enhanced rates. Additionally, we prioritize delivering value to health plans, whether through improving HEDIS measures, client experience, or consistent measurement.

‍4. Imagine a future where every American can afford behavioral health care. What comes next for Grow? 

Manoj: The rapidly evolving behavioral health landscape necessitates not only keeping  up with the current environment, but also proactively envisioning and executing what behavioral health will need in the future. Ultimately, this means doubling down on Grow’s value orientation to reimagine a more equitable, integrated, and higher-quality behavioral health care system, while also being mindful of health plans’ need for cost control.

Cynthia: In addition to stepping up to lead in value creation and quality improvement, we need to bolster the workforce pipeline to make the recent gains we have seen sustainable. Behavioral health should be a viable and attractive career option long term. Grow minimizes many of the stressors that might deter potential providers from accepting insurance and has support available to help prevent burnout and compassion fatigue. We want to inspire the next generation of top talent in behavioral health.