The psychological well being of our youngest members has by no means been extra necessary. At Independence Blue Cross (IBX), we’re strengthening our dedication to youth psychological well being by rising the IBX behavioral well being supplier community and bettering entry for kids and teenage members.
Youth Psychological Well being Impacts Us All
Sadly, behavioral well being situations like nervousness and melancholy have been on the rise amongst kids, adolescents, and younger adults. And the World Happiness Report 2024 reveals happiness amongst younger individuals has declined within the U.S.
One among each six kids has a diagnosable psychological well being situation.1 As well as:
- Almost 60 % of youth with main melancholy don’t obtain any psychological well being therapy.2
- Non-white youths have a 35 % decrease analysis price of main melancholy versus white youths.3
- Greater than half of younger adults ages 18 – 21 reported signs of hysteria or melancholy in 2023.4
The rise in behavioral well being issues for younger individuals doesn’t simply influence the children. Dad and mom and caregivers are additionally affected, and, because of this, so are their employers. Virtually half of staff have a baby youthful than 18. And 53 % of working mother and father have missed work no less than as soon as per thirty days to are likely to their little one’s psychological well being.5
For the well-being of our younger individuals and communities, IBX has strengthened its dedication to youth psychological well being with a give attention to serving to households discover high quality in-network behavioral well being care and bettering availability and entry.
Enhanced Care Navigation Providers for Members
We all know that early intervention and built-in care are necessary for the well-being of kids and youths, so we’re making it simpler for them to get the care they want rapidly.
When members want steerage or care associated to their little one’s behavioral well being, they will rely on our Behavioral Well being group, who can:
- Assess and perceive the kid’s wants
- Present details about in-network therapy choices and sources
- Put them in contact with a Behavioral Well being Case Supervisor for ongoing assist
- Join them to an acceptable in-network behavioral well being supplier to facilitate quick entry to the care they want
- Give in-the-moment assist throughout robust occasions
Members can schedule appointments straight with an in-network supplier, or our Behavioral Well being group can straight schedule appointments with an IBX behavioral well being community supplier for them. We will help members get an appointment rapidly — often inside per week. We work with a number of behavioral well being suppliers that provide quick entry, are culturally responsive, and supply high-quality take care of basic psychological well being points.
Enriching the IBX Behavioral Well being Community
We now have expanded the IBX behavioral well being community by practically 50 % since 2022 to make sure improved entry for each in-person and digital care choices. The sturdy relationships we’ve constructed with these behavioral well being suppliers ensures our members have quick entry to care with confirmed evidence-based approaches for kids, adolescents, younger adults, and households. Listed here are a few of them.
Little Otter
Little Otter makes use of a family-first strategy, which acknowledges that when one a part of a household unit struggles, it could actually influence everybody. They provide digital psychological well being care for kids ages 0 – 14 and their households, together with remedy and psychiatry. Little Otter’s custom-made strategy features a complete platform that mixes on a regular basis wellness instruments with an award-winning little one remedy app. Their web site additionally provides myriad sources for households.
Blackbird Well being
Blackbird Well being gives diagnostic evaluations and therapy for teenagers ages 2 – 26 who’re battling social, developmental, and school-related challenges. They provide each digital and in-person care. Providers embrace medicine administration and discuss remedy. Blackbird focuses on treating nervousness, melancholy, consideration deficit dysfunction, behavioral issues, autism evaluations, bipolar dysfunction, and developmental variations (e.g., speech/language, sensory/motor).
Handspring Well being
Handspring Well being makes use of a digital, evidence-based care mannequin to deal with widespread situations affecting youngsters ages 8 – 24, together with melancholy, household points, anger administration, and little one behavioral issues. They’ve extremely skilled suppliers on employees who specialise in household psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral remedy, dialectical conduct remedy, and different evidence-based approaches. Handspring Well being works carefully with group companions, together with pediatricians and colleges, to make sure coordinated care.
Hopscotch
Hopscotch provides digital care for teenagers ages 1 – 26, together with discuss and play remedy. Hopscotch’s therapy mannequin contains a web based portal that helps remedy exterior of dwell therapy via video games, actions, and mindfulness workout routines. Additionally they present parental coaching to caregivers and household remedy.
Joon
Joon is a digital care mannequin designed to deal with widespread points skilled by teenagers and younger adults, ages 13 – 26. Their scientific group treats nervousness, melancholy, stress, and different psychological well being challenges. Joon has devoted licensed therapists who can present personalised therapy plans. Additionally they provide skill-building sources for sufferers and assist for folks, together with non-compulsory check-ins.
IBX Members Are Not Alone
We now have made nice progress in making behavioral well being providers simpler for our members to entry, however we’re not achieved. We’ll proceed specializing in younger members and their households and discovering methods to reinforce the advantages and sources we provide. Most significantly, we wish to educate our members about these providers so that they use them when they should.
1 Daniel G. Whitney, PhD, and Mark D. Peterson, PhD, “US Nationwide and State-Stage Prevalence of Psychological Well being Issues and Disparities of Psychological Well being Care Use in Kids,” JAMA
2 State of Psychological Well being in America, mhanational.org.
3 BCBSA Well being of America Youth Psychological Well being Report, 2023.
4 The Implications of COVID-19 for Psychological Well being and Substance Use, KFF.org, March 2023.
5 Nationwide Kids’s Hospital, “The Nice Collide: The Affect of Kids’s Psychological Well being on the Office,” Nationwide Basis, Feb. 22, 2022.
Little Otter, Blackbird Well being, Handspring Well being, Hopscotch, and Joon are unbiased corporations.
