The crisis of mental health has touched nearly every household in America. And while the challenge is vast, so are the opportunities to meet it. At Calm, our mission is to help as many people as possible, not only through our direct-to-consumer app, but also by embedding digital mental health tools into the systems people already rely on: their workplace, health plan, and provider networks.
Today, through our existing relationship with Optum, we’re expanding access to Calm Health for millions of older adults enrolled in Optum’s Medicare Advantage (MA) plans. This partnership enables MA plan members to access Calm Health at no additional cost to them, a milestone in our work to integrate mental health support into care journeys for all Americans, and important progress on our path to find ways to harness private sector innovation to benefit as many people as possible.
While access to mental health support has grown, far too many people still encounter barriers to access, aging populations in particular. 20–30% of adults older than the age of 65 report symptoms of anxiety or depression, and older adults exhibit the highest rate of suicidal ideation of any age group. A study by The Aging Society Research Network found that lower-income older workers aged 50-59 reported nearly 5 days a month where their mental health was impacted, noticeably worse than 20 years ago. By leveraging Calm Health and Optum’s existing infrastructure, we are expanding mental health resources and supporting an additional 7 million American seniors.
This expansion allows us to configure Calm Health to meet the unique requirements of MA plans, delivering an experience aligned with each member’s benefits, compliance needs, and state-specific regulations. It also builds on our collaboration with UnitedHealthcare, which expanded access to Calm Health to over 13 million people in 2024. Today, self-insured employers can also offer Calm Health as part of Optum’s behavioral health solutions, deepening our impact across populations. By building on this successful relationship with Optum, we can expand proven tools and resources to enhance mental health outcomes and scale solutions, without increasing cost to the government or taxpayer.
Calm Health is accessible, personalized and easy to navigate, built to address one of the greatest challenges in mental healthcare: driving sustained engagement. One in three Calm Health users follows through on personalized program recommendations based on their screenings and self-reported health conditions. And Calm Health users are twice as likely to engage in outpatient mental health services compared to a baseline group from a national payer.
We have learned that the best way to increase access is by working within existing systems as a trusted partner. This approach has already enabled us to extend mental health support to 26 million people and growing. As we look ahead, we’re committed to serving even more people by expanding with similar partnerships to continue breaking down barriers to access and getting care where it is needed most.
