Hey there. Tim here.

Welcome to The Census, a weekly newsletter to help you succeed in the behavioral healthcare industry.

🚨I have an important announcement. I’m handing over the reins of this publication to Shân Osborn, former business writer and editor at The Hustle’s Trends. 

What you can expect from now on:

• 🔎 Better coverage of what matters

• 📊 More insights, analysis, and data

• 💰 What we’re personally watching in the space

So, without further ado, top stories today: 

1. HEADLINES including the latest on MOTAA, New York’s $7.5B behavioral health waiver, and MDMA-assisted therapy.

2. Money Moves: $22M for suicide prevention, $6M for at-home VR therapy, Uber Health’s new partnership, and more.

3. On Our Radar: A wearable for Alzheimer’s risk?

4. Quick Hits: This week’s top stories in less than a minute.

Let’s go.

P.S. Like you, we’re builders and operators in behavioral healthcare. We want this newsletter to help you crush. TELL US WHAT YOU NEED. 

Reading time: ~4.5 minutes.

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Methadone Access Debate Heats Up As MOTAA Gains Momentum

More than 43M Americans could gain access to methadone under a new bill. Not everyone is thrilled.

US data, six-month rolling average. Source: Google Trends

What’s happening: Methadone, a long-acting opioid, is currently ONLY administered under the direct, in-person supervision of clinicians as part of addiction treatment plans.

The proposed Modernizing Opioid Treatment Access Act (MOTAA) bill would loosen these regulations and: 

• Allow specialists to prescribe methadone for unsupervised, at-home use 

• Give ~43.5M Americans access to the drug

Obviously, this has sparked a raging debate with strong advocates for both sides: 

• Many applaud MOTAA as a welcome change to archaic laws

• Others point out the complexity of methadone treatment and the vital need for supervision 

💡 If the bill is passed, remote patient monitoring programs will become key. There may be an opportunity to help existing methadone clinics transition to virtual models. 

➡ Just yesterday, Sonara Health announced its partnership with Behavioral Health Group to boost access to take-home methadone in South Carolina.

• Crucially, the collaboration will allow patients to remotely record methadone doses for their care teams to review

Similar hybrid models are likely to take off if MOTAA is passed.

Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Firm Numinus Announces Q1 2024 Results

Gross profits are up 18%+ and operating costs are down 19%+. But that’s not what we’re most interested in. 

US data, six-month rolling average. Source: Google Trends

Numinus Wellness focuses on evidence-based psychedelic-assisted therapies for behavioral health.

And they’re betting big on physician education. They’ve built (virtual) certification programs to train practitioners in ketamine-, MDMA-, and psilocybin-assisted therapy.

• Programs are accredited by major US regulatory bodies

• As of January 2024, 700+ people have enrolled 

Why it matters: By offering accredited courses, Numinus:

• Generates ~$5.7k (USD) per graduate 

• Has the pick of the bunch when it comes to recruiting top clinicians

Find their full Q1 financials here. And keeping with psychedelics…

MDMA-Assisted Therapy Shown To Improve Emotional Coping Skills in Severe PTSD

This is the first study comparing the effects of MDMA-assisted therapy to placebo in adult PTSD patients — and it’s hella positive. 

This does *not* mirror the search interest for “MDMA.” We checked. US data, six-month rolling average. Source: Google Trends

Why it matters: Poor emotional coping skills are a huge barrier to successful PTSD treatment. MDMA-assisted therapy appears to help (a lot) by improving patients’ emotional regulation and feelings of self-worth. 

🤑However, it’s expensive. At ~$11k per patient, MDMA-AT costs 3-4x more than current PTSD therapies.

➡ But researchers argue that thanks to its effectiveness, the treatment will save both lives and money in the long term.  

Off the back of their study results, Lykos Therapeutics has requested the FDA grant Priority Review of their new drug application (for the substance used in the trial). Full story. 

‘Groundbreaking’ Behavioral Health Integration Waiver for New York

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) approved a $7.5B waiver allowing the state to integrate primary, behavioral health, and health-related social services over the next three years.

Look at that, CMS is aligned with the people for once. US data, six-month rolling average. Source: Google Trends

Why it matters: Besides being a welcome leap toward comprehensive care, the waiver will allow New York to roll out new workforce development and training programs — particularly important given the healthcare labor shortages. 

• It will also help safety net hospitals looking to transition to value-based care models. Full story here. 

The bigger picture: CMS aren’t the only ones keen to move on primary and behavioral health integration; several major payers are pushing for it, too. And on that integration note…

Evernorth Care Group Expands Behavioral Health Services

A new collaboration with evolvedMD will bring behavioral health clinicians into 20 of the Group’s primary care centers in Phoenix. 

Why it matters: Nearly 7% of Arizona’s population aged 12+ reported having a SUD over the past year, and over 1M of the state’s adults live with a mental health condition. 

A comprehensive care approach leads to way better outcomes for these patients but obviously, it’s not cheap. Not to mention a nightmare for primary care centers to implement amongst labor shortages and payer requirements.

➡ Collaboration models like this can help to fast-track integrated care in areas that need it most — and the big players are clearly willing to partner up. Full press release. 

Money Moves

Funding rounds, mergers, & partnerships

🥽 At-home VR therapy: XR Health nabs $6M.

🤖 AI behavioral coaches for ADHD: Shimmer raises $2.2M.

♥️  Suicide prevention: Telehealth platform Vita Health lands $22.5M 

💻 Large-scale AI models incoming: Mayo Clinic pairs with Cerebras Systems.

🧑‍🎓Community health worker training: A $2M grant will help Montefiore fill the gap.

🧠 Brain injury care for veterans: $100M+ from the Wounded Warrior Project will allow more vets to get fast-tracked PTSD treatment.

🧓 Senior mental health: PE firm Madison River Capital bets on Senior Care Therapy. But…

💸 In 2023, US healthcare PE deals hit their lowest value since 2016. And “analysts anticipate a further decline” in 2024. Read more. 

🚗 Socially Determined partners with Uber Health: They’ll pinpoint people in need and deliver benefits like medical rides, medicine, and food.

On Our Radar

US data, six-month rolling average. Source: Google Trends

There’s a wearable for everything these days — including Alzheimer’s risk. 

A Japanese company has built what could be the world’s first AI model to predict Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia. 

The model uses wearables to track levels of amyloid-beta (​​Aꞵ) protein.

🚨 The issue, however, is that Aꞵ is not the main culprit of Alzheimer’s.

➡ If you missed the doctored images in a series of *very* influential papers on amyloid and Alzheimer’s, catch up here. 

Let’s zoom out for a sec: Not all is lost. Any ultimate explanation of Alzheimer’s is going to have to include Aꞵ as a part of the story. 

• This does, however, illustrate the tendency of corporations to put the cart before the horse with longevity solutions (we get it, it’s a ~$26B market, and we all want in)

We’re taking this as both a cautionary tale on investments in the space, and a positive signal that the industry is willing to throw $$$ (and wristbands) at innovative solutions. 

Quick Hits

Hot headlines in less than a minute. 

😯 No Surprises Act adds a new compliance burden for behavioral health providers with its ‘good faith estimates’ that can be disputed by patients. But for diversified, well-run organizations, “it will not be a material credit risk.”

📈 ACA enrollment hits record high of 20.4M (and growing) thanks, in part, to that massive Medicaid disenrollment.

🧑‍⚕️ Talkspace to finally serve Medicare members in 2024. Well, by the “end of the year”...

💵 70% of revenue cycle leaders will prioritize automation and technology in 2024 (full survey here). 

❤️‍🩹 $30M for 988 suicide center follow-ups if bipartisan bill is passed. 

🤝 Ohio nonprofits The Nord Center and The LCADA Way will merge on July 1st to form a $45M organization. 

⚖️ An AI-powered numberless scale could assist with remote monitoring of eating disorder patients.

🤖 Speaking of AI, global deep tech comes for the US mental health space. Generative AI startup United We Care signed 3 major contracts with “leading healthcare systems in the US market.”

💸 Meanwhile, outsourcing in healthcare continues to soar. The global market for ​​external service providers is projected to reach $259B+ by 2028.

💼 Teladoc to focus on the B2B market and sell BetterHelp directly to employers and organizations. With their roaring reviews, maybe it’s time for employers to ditch the ping-pong table and provide some real benefits.  

📱Acadia invests heavily in electronic health records — with the goal of “ultimately put[ting] some value-based contracts in place.” We’re here for it.

That’s it for this week. See you next Wednesday!

- Shân

P.S. Have a question? Hit reply, I read every one. 

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