This report presents Aon’s independent analysis of the impact of Lyra Health’s Workforce Mental Health Program (WMHP) services on a major employer’s healthcare costs in 2021. The analysis compares medical and prescription drug claims costs between employees who used Lyra’s services (Participants) and those who did not (Non-Participants), providing valuable insights into the effectiveness of Lyra’s mental health offerings in reducing healthcare expenses.

Key Findings:

  1. Cost Savings:
    • Participants who used Lyra services experienced a $4,138 lower Per-Participant-Per-Year (PPPY) cost compared to Non-Participants, exclusive of the cost of Lyra services.
    • This translates to a 59% reduction in healthcare costs for participants, showcasing Lyra’s positive impact on overall healthcare spend.
  2. Mental Health Visits:
    • Participants had 9.1 total mental health visits per member per year, compared to 14.5 visits for Non-Participants under their medical benefit.
    • Lyra participants received an average of 7.4 Lyra WMHP sessions, significantly reducing their need for medical benefit-based mental health visits.
  3. Lower Emergency Department (ED) Utilization:
    • Lyra Participants had 56 fewer ED visits per 1,000 members, leading to a reduction in both mental and non-mental health ED spending.
  4. Prescription Drug Cost Reduction:
    • Prescription drug spending for Participants was $516 lower per member per year, driven by a decrease in the utilization of generic, brand, and specialty drugs.

Detailed Analysis:

  • Medical Spending:
    • Participants had lower medical costs overall, including $1,056 lower in non-mental health claims and $2,566 lower in mental health-related spending.
  • Mental Health Services:
    • Most of the cost reduction in mental health services was driven by a shift to Lyra’s WMHP, with a significant reduction in professional mental health spending and inpatient and outpatient facility costs.
  • Prescription Drug Utilization:
    • Participants showed reduced prescription drug costs with a lower number of prescriptions across generic, brand, and specialty drugs.

Additional Insights:

  • Eligibility and Matching Methodology:
    • Aon used a Cost Efficiency Measurement (CEM) method, matching participants and non-participants based on demographics, geography, and health conditions to ensure a fair comparison.
  • Cost Efficiency Ratio:
    • The calculated efficiency ratio of 3.04 indicates that the savings in participant healthcare costs were more than three times the total cost of the Lyra services, further validating Lyra’s cost-effectiveness.

This article is posted at lyra.com

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