More than 43 million people in the United States experience mental health issues, which accounts for roughly 18.5% of the population. The societal impact of untreated mental health issues costs the United States more than $193.2 billion dollars annually, with chronic depression and bipolar disorder the most common mental health conditions.
Mental health services provide individuals suffering from these conditions with highly effective and reliable treatment. The benefits of mental health services aren’t restricted to individuals that have been diagnosed with a serious mental health disorder, however. Engaging a professional counsellor can provide a high level of assistance to anybody experiencing high stress levels, anxiety, or other less severe mental health issues.
Attending professional counselling sessions on a regular basis, however, can be extremely expensive. Private counselling services can cost anywhere between $50 USD and $250 hourly, which may or may not be covered by private health insurance. As a general rule, coverage for professional counselling services under health insurance plans is extremely limited.
One of the most serious drawbacks of using a health insurance plan to cover counselling sessions is that in order to claim reimbursement for mental health services, it’s necessary to obtain a professional diagnosis for a mental health disorder or condition. This diagnosis is sent to the insurance company, where it is permanently recorded on file.
A mental health diagnosis can negatively impact insurance premiums. A new online telemedicine mental health service, however, is providing individuals seeking regular counselling services with an anonymous, highly effective, and low-cost alternative to traditional mental health services. The Betterhelp platform offers individuals a personalized online counselling service that costs less than the co-pay fee of insurance-covered mental health services.
In this article, we’ll take a look at the Betterhelp platform and find out how it works to help you decide whether it’s the right counselling platform for you.
What Is Betterhelp?
Betterhelp is a new online telemedicine platform that provides professional counselling via live chat sessions, live phone sessions, and live video sessions. The Betterhelp platform is the largest e-counselling platform in the world, and has run more than 11 million individual online counselling sessions to date.
All of the therapists that provide support via the Betterhelp platform are certified health practitioners. Betterhelp provide users with access to confidential support from trained and licensed therapists, accredited psychologists, clinical social workers, family therapists, and board licensed professional counsellors. In order to qualify for the Betterhelp platform, therapists must possess more than 2,000 hours of hands-on experience and three years of proven practice.
The unique structure of the Betterhelp provides individuals seeking professional counselling help with a innovative method or rendering mental health care that has been clinically proven to be more effective than traditional counselling.
An extensive study performed by Berkeley found that 98% of all Betterhelp users made significant progress as a result of Betterhelp treatment, with more than 94% of all users stating that they preferred the Betterhelp platform to traditional face-to-face therapy. More than 70% of users experience significantly reduced depression symptoms, making Betterhelp one of the most effective mental health solutions available.
How Betterhelp Works
The Betterhelp platform can be accessed at any time from anywhere with an internet connection. Users are able to access assistance through the Betterhelp website, or via the dedicated Betterhelp app, which is compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
In order to get started with Betterhelp, users begin by filling out a comprehensive questionnaire that helps Betterhelp assess their needs and pair them with the right counsellor. The Betterhelp questionnaire covers factors such as gender, age, relationship status, counselling history, physical health, sleeping habits, dietary intake, and mental state.
By assessing a wide range of different factors, the Betterhelp platform creates a unique profile of a user that can be used to find them the most relevant assistance possible. A major advantage of the Betterhelp platform is that user accounts are completely anonymous, and aren’t shared with medical or insurance records. Betterhelp does request an emergency contact, however, who are notified if a counsellor believes a patient may be in danger.
Betterhelp also allows users to use a “shred” function in live chats, which gives users the ability to destroy messages sent to therapists via the live chat function so they won’t show up in their account. All of the communications delivered via the Betterhelp platform are secured with banking-grade 256-bit encryption, and Betterhelp doesn’t share any information with employers or insurance companies.
The pricing structure for Betterhelp is also extremely cost effective when compared to traditional face to face counselling. Betterhelp charges between $35 USD and $70 USD weekly for unlimited access to a personal counsellor, which is far cheaper than the average cost of $150 to $250 USD for one single session with a traditional face-to-face counsellor.
Betterhelp Review Summary
The Betterhelp platform is one of the fastest growing mental health care options available, and has already been adopted by millions of people around the world. If you’re looking for a dedicated, reliable, and low-cost mental health or therapy solution, the Betterhelp platform is a great option.
