Finding a mental health provider can be difficult. Point32Health boasts that its Behavioral Health Navigator can connect most members to an appointment within one week.
Point32Health launched the navigator program in 2023. The Canton, Mass.-based insurer owns Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Tufts Health Plan.
The program connects members to a navigator, who finds them a behavioral health provider that matches their needs. The navigators are able to obtain telehealth appointments during a member’s first call.
Bill Harlan, vice president of behavioral health at Point32Health, told Becker’s the navigator program has helped the insurer to better understand the needs of its members and to form a “wellrounded and robust” behavioral health network.
“This oftentimes informs the type of specialties we should be recruiting for within our network,” he said. “We might hear there’s an interest in a certain type of therapy that members are requesting. That type of data is really invaluable to us as a payer, so we can make sure our network meets those needs.”
Members appreciate the personal touch of the navigator’s provider, Mr. Harlan said. After connecting members to a behavioral health provider, they check in to make sure the provider was a good fit.
According to Point32Health, 99% of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care members who participated in the program were happy with their provider.
“There’s a lot of studies that show the rapport you have with your therapist is ultimately the best predictor of good treatment,” Mr. Harlan said. “That’s the goal we’re trying to get to. It’s a very easy thing for us to do and then make an adjustment if it’s not the right fit.”
Harvard Pilgrim Health Care has added 30,000 behavioral health providers to its network in the past year, according to a March 18 news release.
“Providers are looking for as low an administrative burden as possible. We try to hear that feedback and incorporate it as best we can,” Mr. Harlan said. “We’re also wanting to make sure we’re paying competitive rates. We have to be able to partner with our network to be successful and for our members to get the treatment they need.”