Telehealth giant Teladoc Health is partnering with startup Brightline to extend virtual mental healthcare services for children, adolescents and their families.
Through the partnership, members under the age of 18 will have access to Brightline's behavioral health solutions through Teladoc's virual "front door," the companies said.
The collaboration with Brightline builds on Teladoc's existing mental health offerings and expands access to care to members of all ages, a Teladoc spokesperson said.
The partnership aims to increase access to mental healthcare providers specifically trained in pediatric, adolescent and family mental health, according to the companies. The youth mental health offering will support a wide range of conditions and degrees of mental health concerns and enables simplified contracting and management of a comprehensive mental healthcare solution for employers and health plan clients, executives said.
Launched in 2019, Brightline, a Fierce 15 honoree in 2022, developed a technology-enabled behavioral health home for children and their families focused on providing holistic, measurement-driven care. Brightline's platform offers multidisciplinary care teams and a family-focused approach combined with evidence-based treatments and innovative care delivery models. Care teams include coaches, therapists and prescribers. The company's platform offers digital on-demand support, coaching programs, and extensive clinical services to support families struggling with anxiety, cyberbullying, ADHD and depression.
Brightline is backed by major investors KKR, GV (formerly Google Ventures), Oak HC/FT and Threshold and has raised nearly $190 million to date, including a $105 million series C round in 2022.
The partnership taps into Brightline's "comprehensive and responsive model of care, network of specialists and robust digital platform," said Teladoc Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Vidya Raman-Tangella.
"We believe that access to mental health services earlier in life is a vital first step for younger generations to take charge of their healthcare journeys," Raman-Tangella said.
Those with access to this program will also be able to quickly and easily transition into the broader Teladoc Health ecosystem of care after turning 18, executives said.
There is an increasing focus on youth mental health. Nearly 20% of children and young people ages 3-17 in the United States have a mental, emotional, developmental, or behavioral disorder, and suicidal behaviors among high school students increased more than 40% in the decade before 2019, according to a 2022 report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. These trends were exacerbated during the COVID-19 pandemic.
There also is a shortage of providers trained in pediatric and adolescent mental healthcare with about 10,500 practicing child and adolescent psychiatrists in the U.S., or about 14 psychiatrists per 100,000 children, according to the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. This creates significant barriers to mental health treatment, and only half of children and adolescents with diagnosable mental health problems receive the treatment they need, AACAP data shows.
Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has said that youth mental health is the "defining public health challenge" facing the country. There is increasing concern about the impact of social media on the mental health of kids and teens and Murthy has called for health warnings on social media for younger users.
A new report also highlights a significant gap between the level of support that teenagers feel and the amount that parents think their children have. Only about a quarter of teens said they always get the social and emotional support they need but parents were nearly three times more likely to think they did, according to a report published this week by the National Center for Health Statistics.
"Children, teens, and families have unique needs and experiences that require a specialized approach that acknowledges and addresses their specific challenges, contexts, and developmental stages," said Myra Altman, M.D., Brightline's chief clinical officer. "We are excited to be partnering with Teladoc to provide easy access to Brightline’s high-quality mental care, including digital support, coaching, therapy, and medication management services to even more families."