A virtual care startup founded by two health systems has expanded into behavioral health.
Ovatient, a nonprofit started by Cleveland-based MetroHealth System and Charleston, S.C.-based MUSC Health, will now provide mental health therapy, single-session interventions and skills groups virtually to MetroHealth patients. Since launching virtual primary care with MetroHealth in spring 2024, Ovatient has done more than 10,000 visits in northeast Ohio and found that more than 19% of those patients needed behavioral healthcare.
"We believe strongly in Ovatient's virtual-first care model, which is improving access to care for our patients and increasing MetroHealth's share of care in our region," said Nabil Chehade, MD, executive vice president and chief clinical transformation officer of MetroHealth System, in an Oct. 21 statement. "We look forward to continuing to partner with Ovatient to bring more virtual care solutions to our patients."
Ovatient's services are in network for patients with insurance accepted by MetroHealth, including Medicare and Medicaid. The virtual care platform is integrated with Epic and MyChart.