Give your whole team a faster way to talk to someone.

Through the Employer Sponsored Preventive Access (ESPA) Plan, employees, their spouses, and eligible dependents have access to virtual counseling services through the employee technology portal. Members can connect with licensed counselors and clinical social workers for confidential, professional support with a wide range of personal, emotional, and behavioral health concerns.

The Employer Sponsored Preventive Access (ESPA) Plan

Talking with a qualified counselor can make a meaningful difference, but finding a provider and securing an appointment often takes weeks. The Employer Sponsored Preventive Access (ESPA) Plan makes it easier for employees and their families to access virtual counseling with licensed clinicians by phone, video, or mobile app.

Whether they need support for stress, anxiety, relationship challenges, life transitions, or other personal concerns, help is readily available through the employee technology portal. There is no insurance billing, no out-of-pocket expense to employees, and qualified expenses are reimbursable through the ESPA.

Why it is hard for employees to find a counselor

The hardest part is often just getting started. Demand for counseling has risen, but the supply of providers has not kept pace. The figures below come from national surveys and federal data. They describe how access usually works for a workforce without a plan like this one.

Counseling and therapy commonly run a two to six week wait for a first appointment, and in-network providers are frequently slower because their panels are full. (National Council for Mental Wellbeing; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration access data.)
One national survey put the average wait for a first mental health appointment at about 48 days, compared with about 20 days for primary care. (Merritt Hawkins.)

A few weeks may not sound like much. When someone has finally decided to ask for help, it is long enough for them to give up on the idea. Shortening that wait is the point of this part of the plan.

What is virtual counseling?

Virtual counseling is talk therapy delivered remotely by a licensed clinician. It gives a person a private, structured space to work through stress, anxiety, low mood, grief, and the ordinary hard parts of life. Your employees may access it through the employee technology portal, for themselves and their families.

Who provides it

Counseling is provided by licensed counselors and clinical social workers. When a person needs more than talk therapy, board-certified psychiatric nurse practitioners and occupational therapists are available through the same portal. If longer care is needed, the counselors will understand your health plan, and help guide your employees into finding the best fit for our employees.

How counseling and psychiatric care fit together

Counseling and psychiatric care solve different problems. Counseling is talk therapy: a place to think out loud and build coping skills. Psychiatric care is the clinical side, including diagnosis and medication. Many people use both at once, and the plan includes both. A counselor can flag when a member might benefit from a psychiatric evaluation, and the handoff happens inside the same portal.

Access for the whole family

Counseling extends to the enrolled employee, their spouse, and their dependents. Each family member can use it for their own sessions, completely secure and HIPAA compliant.

What this means for your major medical plan

Faster access helps your employee. It also changes the math on your major medical plan.

Untreated stress, anxiety, and depression do not stay still. They tend to deepen, and they show up at work as lost focus, missed days, and higher healthcare use. Mental health conditions are consistently among the largest drivers of total healthcare spend. (Milliman; National Alliance on Mental Illness.)

The ESPA is built around early, preventive use. When your employees and their families can talk to a counselor in days instead of weeks, more is handled before it becomes a larger clinical or claims problem. Over time, that reduces dependency on the major medical plan and softens the claims pressure behind premium increases.

The financial mechanics sit underneath all of that. Qualified medical expenses are reimbursable under the ESPA, a Section 105(b) self-insured medical reimbursement plan, with no insurance billing, no out-of-pocket expenses, and no change to employee take-home pay. The plan works alongside your existing major medical plan. The payroll tax savings the employer recovers typically exceed the cost of plan administration.

How it works

Frequently asked questions

How fast can an employee get a counseling appointment?

Traditional access often takes a few weeks. Virtual counseling is designed to be faster. Exact timing depends on availability and the member’s needs, so the plan does not publish a guaranteed timeframe.

Who provides the counseling?

Licensed counselors and clinical social workers. Board-certified psychiatric nurse practitioners are available when a member needs clinical care beyond talk therapy.

Is counseling available for employees' families?

Yes. It extends to the enrolled employee, their spouse, and their dependents.

How is counseling different from psychiatric care?

Counseling is talk therapy. Psychiatric care focuses on the clinical side, including medication. Many people use both, and the plan includes both.

Is there a limit on the number of sessions?

The plan is designed for ongoing use rather than a fixed number of visits.

What does a session cost the employee?

There is no out-of-pocket expense to your employees. Qualified expenses are reimbursable under the ESPA, with no insurance billing, and employee take-home pay does not change.

Are sessions private?

Sessions are conducted by licensed clinicians who follow professional and HIPAA confidentiality standards.

Is this insurance?

No. The ESPA is not insurance. It is an employer-sponsored plan, and counseling is reimbursable under the ESPA.

Give your team a faster way to talk to someone.

BizPower Benefits by BizPower360

Note: Tax benefits stem from the structure of the Self-Insured Medical Reimbursement Plan, which uses pre-tax funding. Employers benefit from reduced FICA taxes, while employees only realize tax advantages if they actively participate in the plan and earn the reimbursement after-tax. Without participation, any reimbursement becomes taxable, negating the financial benefit.