Talkiatry and ERC Pathlight Expand In-Network Care Pathways for Eating, Mood, and Anxiety Disorders

• Partnership between telepsychiatry and multidisciplinary care providers ensures patients suffering from complex conditions including eating, mood, and anxiety disorders receive the right treatment throughout their recovery process, regardless of acuity level

NEW YORK and DENVER, Dec. 18, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Talkiatry and Eating Recovery Center (ERC) and Pathlight Mood & Anxiety Centers (Pathlight) today announced a partnership that eliminates gaps in behavioral health care for children and adults suffering from eating, mood, and anxiety disorders. Talkiatry's telepsychiatry patients experiencing these disorders who decompensate can be moved to higher levels of care at ERC Pathlight, while ERC Pathlight patients whose symptoms are improving can step down into ongoing telepsychiatry care with Talkiatry. The organizations will work closely together to coordinate case management and information exchange, ensuring patients receive uninterrupted, high-quality treatment as they transition between levels of care on their path to recovery.

Eating disorders are a universal problem, impacting people across all ages, genders, ethnicities, professions, and body sizes. It's estimated that 9% of the U.S. population (28.8 million people) will experience an eating disorder during their lifetime, including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, and ARFID (Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder). Getting people into specialized treatment is imperative because the stakes are high: every 52 minutes a person dies as a direct result of an eating disorder in the United States, with anorexia nervosa having the highest mortality rate of all psychiatric illnesses.

Eating disorders also have an outsized impact on marginalized populations. LGBTQ+ people have higher rates of eating disorders compared to cisgender heterosexual adults, but only 4% of LGBTQ+ people seek treatment. Transgender college students are diagnosed with eating disorders at four times the rate of their cisgender classmates. BIPOC communities are 50% less likely to be screened or diagnosed for an eating disorder, even though they suffer at the same rates as other ethnicities. Contrary to popular belief, people with larger bodies have a 2.45 times greater chance of engaging in unhealthy weight control behaviors. Expanding access to quality care directs important resources to vulnerable people who are often left to fend for themselves.

As the nation's leading mental health care system dedicated to the treatment of eating disorders and primary mood and anxiety disorders, ERC Pathlight provides inpatient, in-person intensive outpatient (IOP), virtual IOP, partial hospitalization (PHP), and residential care for those with eating, mood, and anxiety disorders. By partnering with Talkiatry, a leading provider of high-quality, in-network virtual psychiatric care, ERC Pathlight ensures people who have successfully completed its treatment programs can step down to lower levels of care, reducing the chances of relapse. For Talkiatry patients who are decompensating into a higher acuity level, ERC Pathlight gives patients a seamless referral process for insured care at ERC Pathlight.

"Eating disorders and mood and anxiety disorders can be difficult to treat due to their complexity, and it's extremely important that people are receiving an accurate diagnosis and the most appropriate level of care to keep them safe and help them improve," said Dr. Howard Weeks, Chief Medical Officer, ERC Pathlight. "By working together, ERC Pathlight and Talkiatry make sure patients receive help that's targeted to where they are on the road to recovery."

"People with eating disorders often need long-term support, so recovery can be a lifelong journey. That's why it's crucial to ensure patients receive personalized care, which can include everything from intensive in-patient treatment to regular telehealth visits with Talkiatry's more than 150 physicians trained in addressing these specific conditions," said Dr. Georgia Gaveras, co-founder and Chief Medical Officer, Talkiatry. "ERC Pathlight's mission aligns with Talkiatry's core belief that every patient deserves accessible, high-quality care, and together we're expanding the care continuum for those with eating, mood, and anxiety disorders."

Talkiatry's 350 full-time, licensed psychiatrists are in-network with more than 60 insurers across the country, covering more than 70% of commercial lives. Most Talkiatry visits cost patients $30 or less after insurance (includes all types of patient costs: copayment, deductible, and coinsurance. Excludes no-shows and includes $0 payments).

ERC Pathlight offers treatment programs for eating, mood, and anxiety disorders in 15 states. It offers both virtual and on-site care, with over 30 centers located across the country. ERC Pathlight is also one of the only in-network providers of care for eating disorders partnering with all major commercial insurers. ERC Pathlight offers a comprehensive approach to care for family and caregivers who need support, and its specialized programs have treated more than 20,000 patients to date.

To learn more about Talkiatry, please visit: www.talkiatry.com/contact-us. To learn more about ERC Pathlight, please visit: https://www.eatingrecoverycenter.com/

About Talkiatry
Talkiatry is a national mental health practice that provides in-network psychiatry and therapy. They were co-founded by a patient and a triple-board-certified psychiatrist to solve the problems both groups face in accessing and providing the highest quality mental healthcare. 60% of adults in the U.S. with a diagnosable mental illness go untreated every year because care is inaccessible, while 45% of clinicians are out of network with insurers because reimbursement rates are low and paperwork is unduly burdensome. With innovative technology and a human-centered philosophy, Talkiatry provides patients with the care they need—and allows psychiatrists to focus on why they got into medicine. Learn more at www.talkiatry.com and follow us on Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn.

About Eating Recovery Center and Pathlight Mood & Anxiety Centers
Eating Recovery Center (ERC) and Pathlight Mood & Anxiety Center (Pathlight) comprise the nation's leading mental health care system dedicated to the treatment of eating disorders and primary mood and anxiety disorders. ERC specializes in treating patients struggling with eating disorders and related conditions including anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, diabulimia, binge eating disorder, avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), and unspecified eating disorders (OSFED) and co-occurring conditions. Pathlight specializes in treatment for mood and anxiety disorders such as generalized anxiety disorder, panic disorder, depression and mania, trauma-related disorders including post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as co-occurring substance use disorder. ERC and Pathlight provide innovative, evidence-based, treatment programs tailored for patients of all ages, genders, races and ethnicities. Working closely with patients as well as their families, ERC and Pathlight's multi-disciplinary treatment programs are designed to help illuminate their unique paths forward and provide a foundation for resilience and long-lasting mental wellness. ERC and Pathlight offer inpatient, residential, partial hospitalization (PHP) and intensive outpatient (IOP) levels of care in centers across the country as well as virtual IOP telebehavioral health services. For more information, please visit eatingrecoverycenter.com or pathlightbh.com.

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SOURCE Talkiatry