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Fact Checked
Headway is an online service that connects therapy seekers with mental health care providers who accept insurance.
One in five people in the U.S. are affected by mental illness each year, according to the National Alliance on Mental Health[1], but cost is what prevents many from getting the care they need, according to Headway. Headway works to address this cost issue by making it easier for practitioners to accept insurance, enabling prospective clients to find them.
When Headway CEO and co-founder Andrew Adams moved to New York in 2015, he couldn’t find a therapist he could afford. Most mental health providers don’t accept insurance because the administrative burden is too prohibitive for individual practitioners, according to Adams. As a result, people with treatable mental health conditions are often left without care.
Adams co-founded Headway in 2018 with the goal of rectifying this cost-driven care deficit. Headway uses software that handles the insurance administration work for therapists, allowing them to add insurance coverage to their client offerings. In his 2020 blog post “Introducing Headway,” Adams indicates that many of the therapists you can connect with via Headway don’t accept insurance anywhere else[2].
Start your search for a therapist right from Headway’s homepage or select the appropriate tab at the top of the page for more information if you’re a mental health provider or a health plan representative.
To find a therapist, you’ll have to first provide your location, concern and insurance provider. You can also opt to wait before detailing your concerns or disclosing your insurance provider.
Once you click “find providers,” you’ll see a list of available practitioners next to a state map showing their locations. Included in each profile is information such as whether they offer in-person or virtual sessions, the insurance types they accept, their practice specialties, characteristics and their next available appointment time.
When you find a provider who might be a good fit, your next click brings you to an information and availability page. Here, you can read more about the therapist, find out what your cost will be and schedule an appointment.
With plans in place for nation-wide expansion, Headway currently serves:
The cost of therapy through Headway varies from person to person.
Headway doesn’t charge consumers or providers for its service. Instead, the company gains revenue from the health plans it works with.
As a patient, you’ll pay the therapy and patient responsibility costs as determined by your health plan. However, there’s no additional fee to use the service that Headway provides.
Users can find out their personal therapy cost by using Headway’s secure, encrypted data connection, according to the company. By providing your insurance company name, your member ID, date of birth and first and last name, you can look up your benefits.
Headway’s system is set up to provide immediate price transparency, claims company representative Erik Milster, which means you’ll know the cost you’ll be responsible for before you book your therapy session.
According to Erik Milster, Headway software offers benefits for individuals, providers and health plans:
For individuals: Headway provides user-friendly access to a wide range of mental health providers at a low cost because of insurance coverage.
For providers: Headway’s single-tech infrastructure covers administrative tasks like scheduling, credentialing, revenue cycle management and billing.
For health plans: Headway makes it possible for health plan administrators to have real-time access to information from health care providers in areas including plan outcome data, quality of care, timeliness of treatment and patient experience.
The American Psychological Association (APA) states that professional health providers including psychologists must be licensed in the state in which they provide their service. In the case of remote care like online counseling or telehealth, it’s your location that determines the licensing requirement.
Most states have a searchable, online directory you can access to determine whether a practitioner holds a current and applicable license for your jurisdiction.
Headway lists license type, number, state, and expiration as required information to apply for insurance credentialing through their service.
The benefits of Headway for health providers extend to their clients, according to company representative Erik Milster, who says that Headway “supports them with the administrative tasks of running an independent practice, leaving more time to focus on delivering quality care.”
“Providers can save up to five hours a week on administrative tasks through Headway,” he adds.
Milster describes the “deep-rooted barriers within the mental health system,” explaining that without Headway, “providers are burdened by the administrative work associated with practicing in-network. Health plans don’t have the infrastructure to seamlessly scale their mental health offering. Patients can’t find the quality care they deserve.” According to Milster, “Headway’s proprietary technology addresses each of these barriers.”
The ability to find more practitioners who offer the option of virtual care is another Headway advantage.
“When you do virtual therapy, you don’t have to take time off work to commute or find childcare, so there is definitely a convenience factor to doing video conferencing as opposed to face to face,” explains Vaile Wright, Ph.D., senior director of health care innovation at the APA and a licensed psychologist,
In some circumstances, video conferencing can be as effective as face to face. “There is evidence it works across the lifespan in general,” continues Dr. Wright.
There are some possible drawbacks to virtual care as well. Missed informational cues is an example. “As a therapist, I am only seeing someone from the head up, so I might not see some body language like a kicking foot or picking nails, which could communicate anxiety,” explains Dr. Wright.
Prioritize Your Mental Health
Whether you’re dealing with grief, want to improve your coping strategies, or you’re just feeling down – BetterHelp makes starting therapy easy.
Headway’s website features a section called “What people are saying” that includes client names and their quotes, along with links to their social media profiles. A common theme in the comments is how easy it is to use Headway, as well as praise for the therapists and the affordability of the service.
Headway has had three Better Business Bureau complaints in the last 12 months, and four in total. The complaints raise issues about dispute resolution and communication. Headway’s Trustpilot score is 3.2 stars, based on three reviews (one each for 1-star, 2-star, and 5-star). The two low-star ratings feature comments about billing and trust issues. The 5-star rating calls the service “good and comprehensive.”
When out-of-pocket therapy costs feel too high, Headway is an option for affordable mental health care. If you have insurance, Headway offers a way to use your coverage to access mental health support.
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Nancy Lovering is a writer with a background in public education. She’s been writing non-fiction web content for almost a decade, covering a broad range of topics relating to health and psychology. She has bylines in Psych Central, Healthline, Greatist, Health Digest, Well Within You, Care Dash and Livestrong.
Jessica is a writer and editor with over a decade of experience in both lifestyle and clinical health topics. Before Forbes Health, Jessica was an editor for Healthline Media, WW and PopSugar, as well as numerous health-related startups. When she isn’t writing or editing, Jessica can be found at the gym, listening to a health or true prime podcast, or spending time outside. She also really enjoys bread (even though she’s not supposed to eat it).