Ginger And Headspace Merge To Tackle Growing Mental Health Crisis In The U.S.

Nearly a quarter of the U.S. population is in need of mental health care and support but, for some reason or another, they are currently not receiving it, according to data from the Kaiser Family Foundation. This growing mental health crisis, with care neither widely accessible nor affordable, is what the new entity from Ginger and Headspace hopes to address. Valued at a reported $3 billion, Headspace Health will tackle the systemic challenges getting in the way of effective consumer care by creating a holistic, scalable, mental health and wellbeing company. Bringing together Headspace’s direct-to-consumer mindfulness and meditation app, with Ginger’s on-demand digital mental health coaching and video therapy platform, the combined company plans to push beyond a DTC model to include corporate and Medicaid-focused plans in order to meet the behavioral health and overall well-being goals and needs of a broad base of presently underserved consumers.

The new comprehensive offering from the combined digital mental health entity, Headspace Health, will reach nearly 100 million consumers through its direct-to-consumer line of business, as well as more than 2,700 enterprise and health plan partners, making it one of the world’s most accessible platforms. By giving users access to care earlier in their mental health journey, the company is well positioned to address the demand for mental health services that traditional care delivery methods are failing to meet. Its synergetic mix of digital offerings and personalized solutions help people build healthy, lasting lifestyle routines.

One of the first initiatives coming out of the new company is a collaboration with the traffic and navigation app Waze. As part of the partnership, drivers will be able to stream a customized Spotify playlist with music and content from Headspace, intended to help users improve their mental state while on the road. 

Ginger and Headspace aren’t alone in their merger, or their mission to address the mental health care gap affecting tens of millions. Last fall, digital behavioral-health company Lyra Health partnered with meditation app Calm to provide Calm's services to its customers and make it easier for employers to offer their employees immediately accessible mental health tools. 

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This article originally appeared in PSFK’s research paper, Enhancing Consumer Self-Care.