Mastery Schools Selects Talkspace to Provide Free, Virtual Mental Health Care Coverage for Staff and their Families
Press Release
New benefit will provide Mastery staff and family members age 13+ with free access to clinical mental health support
PHILADELPHIA (August 18, 2021) – Mastery Schools today announced the launch of an innovative pilot program with Talkspace, a leading virtual behavioral healthcare company, to provide free mental health services to more than 1,700 Mastery Schools staff, their spouses, and children over the age of 13. Through this program, Mastery staff and their families will have access to unlimited private messaging (text, voice, or video) and video appointment services with a licensed therapist from the Talkspace network.
The offering comes at a time when COVID-19 continues to heighten the need for virtual access to behavioral health care services, and represents the public school system’s commitment to providing Mastery staff with necessary mental health support.
“As the pandemic continues to impact our daily lives, now more than ever, people are feeling stressed and isolated,” said Charity Hughes, Chief Talent Officer. “It’s imperative for schools to find ways to increase access to critical mental health support services. We’re proud to work with Talkspace to provide our staff and their families with free, flexible, and convenient mental health care.”
Since the onset of the pandemic, Mastery has more than doubled its investment in behavioral health employee benefits. Increased access to mental health support services has resulted in a 65 percent increase in behavioral health visits among employees and covered family members, rising to an average of 13 annual visits per employee.
“Our work with Mastery Charter Schools further underscores our commitment to bringing mental health support to those who need it most, especially those who work within our public school system,” said Erin Boyd, Chief Growth Officer, Enterprise, at Talkspace. “Teachers have been faced with extremely challenging stress as a result of the pandemic, and Talkspace hopes to alleviate some of this pressure and provide meaningful value by offering free and convenient therapy to Mastery Schools staff and their families.”
Mastery’s offering with Talkspace is through the company’s Unlimited Messaging Therapy and Live Video platform, which offers organizations online therapy and a range of self-guided tools and resources to support employees amid a time where the need to access services remotely has increased exponentially due to the pandemic. Through Talkspace’s confidential and secure platform, employees will be able to find immediate professional support for the personal issues that matter most to them, including HIPAA-compliant, same-day mental health services.
Local Philadelphia and Camden therapists who are interested in becoming a Talkspace provider can visit talkspace.com/join-our-network/therapist for more details. For more information about Talkspace’s comprehensive online mental health treatment options, please visit this page.
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About Mastery Schools
At Mastery Schools, we prepare students for post-secondary success. Mastery’s 24 public schools educate more than 14,000 students from grades Kindergarten through 12th in Camden and Philadelphia. Nationally recognized for our commitment to excellence, Mastery prepares students to achieve success with engaging teachers, rigorous academics, and a continuum of student supports. With love and high expectations, Mastery guides students to finding their own paths to success—whether they want to attend college or start their career right after graduation.
For more information, please visit www.masterycharter.org and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
About Talkspace
Talkspace is a digital behavioral technology healthcare company enabled by a purpose-built technology platform. As a digital healthcare company, all care is delivered through an easy-to-use and fully encrypted web and mobile platform, consistent with HIPAA and other state regulatory requirements.
Today, the need for care feels more urgent than ever. When seeking treatment, whether it’s psychiatry or adolescent, individual or couples therapy, Talkspace offers treatment options for almost every need. With Talkspace, members can send their dedicated therapists text, video, and voice messages anytime, from anywhere, and engage in live video sessions. As of May 2021, over 2 million people have used Talkspace, and over 55 million lives are covered for Talkspace through insurance and employee assistance programs or other network behavioral health paid benefit programs.
For more information about Talkspace commercial relationships, visit https://business.talkspace.com
To learn more about online therapy, please visit: https://www.talkspace.com/online-therapy