Innovation

Unum’s Behavioral Health product is a service that provides employees an easily accessible mental health support and treatment program. It is a personalized approach to treatment that provides self-directed baseline assessments, easily accessible resources, and management tools, as well as access for those with a need to meet with a therapist or a coach via a partnership with Meru Health, a leading provider of mental health services. https://www.unum.com/employers/solutions/behavioral-health

Inspiration

Swapnil Prabha, VP of Digital Offerings, joined Unum with a directive to determine what new services the company could create to enhance the customer experience, while making money. “It’s not always bad to have a financial motive – oftentimes it can lead to an altruistic motivation being translated into an even better outcome. Unum’s Behavioral Health product is a great example of a mandate that not only resulted in an opportunity for the company to gain financially, but for us to deliver a product that has the potential to positively impact the world.”

Swapnil credits a Unum colleague for being the real inspiration behind the development of the Behavioral Health product. “This colleague recognized that behavioral health claims were on the rise. Her passion was infectious. At the time, she was actively collaborating with our short-term disability claims organization to come up with a process to enhance mental health support for claimants. As I was working with her team to brainstorm products we might offer to help claimants recover, a light bulb went off for me: What if we created a product that was a proactive solution, preventative in nature, and kept employees from going on leave for a mental health issue in the first place?”

Overall impact

Unum’s Behavioral Health product is one of the first-of-its-kind digital offerings by an insurance company in consultation with McLean Hospital, named #1 Best Hospital in America 2022-2023 for Psychiatry by US News and World Report, and in partnership with Meru Health, a mental health provider of evidence-based therapy and coaching. With this model, Unum’s customers are getting quicker access to mental health tools and services, and the right support. This is a big change from the traditional model of first-come, first-served care delivery. In that model, all are directed to in-person therapy, even if some would benefit from a self-directed, skills-based solution available via an app. Through screening, the model used by this digital app ensures that those who are truly in need get access to a therapist or coach and those who would find in self-directed program get access to those tools.

Business benefit

The benefit of the Behavioral Health product on Unum’s business is two-fold. It can help Unum’s clients’ employees maintain mental health and wellbeing, avoiding a leave of absence from work in some cases. It can also help a claimant who is on leave for mental health issues recover and get back to work and life quicker. In both instances, Unum benefits from a reduction in claims cost because fewer individuals reach a point of distress and a need to take a leave from work. This product benefits employers (Unum’s clients) and provides preventative care for employees, keeping more of them healthy and on the job instead of on leave or not being fully present even if they may be physically there (presenteeism).

Social and environmental benefit

In a recent survey of Unum’s customers, mental health is the second challenge after providing affordable benefits to their workforce. These results reinforce Unum’s opinion that the need for behavioral health services will remain high and that employers should stay focused on efforts to support their workforce. Unum’s Behavioral Health digital tool can provide improved access to care, one of the biggest barriers today. In addition to breaking down that barrier, removing stigma and normalizing the discussion about mental health in the workplace has been a key goal.

“Back in 2020 when I started this work, I thought of myself as pretty progressive in my thinking, accepting that when I would have a mental health issue, I would definitely get the help I needed. Two years ago, I didn’t think about taking care of my mental health the way I did about my physical health with preventative appointments. This product challenges that old thinking – it encourages people to proactively take care of their mental health by learning skills, instead of waiting until they are in crisis to seek help. In a weird way, a silver lining from COVID-19 has been openness by society to the idea that individuals and family members need to be proactive in taking care of their mental health. Although the cost of a personalized digital service like Unum’s Behavioral Health is higher than traditional Employee Assistance Programs (EAP) services, our customers tell us it is well worth the investment to help keep their employees mentally well.”

Interview

Swapnil Prabha, Vice President of Digital Offerings