Today, Magellan Health Services Inc. (NASDAQ: MGLN) announced a strategic relationship with OneHealth® Solutions, Inc. to provide its customers with an online and mobile platform supporting several personalized solutions for topics such as addiction, autism family support and eating disorders. The technology-enabled services include a dedicated support staff to increase engagement through personalized welcome messages, access to peer health coaches, community managers, expert discussions, and live online meetings and group chats where members can learn and interact with guest experts to drive positive behavior change. Online support is also accessible on mobile phones (Android and Apple iOS), which gives members more opportunities to benefit from real-time peer support within their busy lives.

As a result of steadily increasing social media trends, better options are needed to engage members in partnership with providers through integrated online peer and care coaching. Innovative social networking solutions will position providers to deliver immediate access to quality care, reduce side effects, and promote the attainment of new skills that enhance long-term outcomes.

"We believe peer-to-peer support is the cornerstone of empowerment and recovery providing authentic empathy, validation, and resources for those struggling with mental health issues," said Laurie Gondek, Senior Vice President, Behavioral Health Product Innovation, Magellan Health Services. "By offering online access to peer support communities for all of our customers - EAP, employers, health plans and government entities (federal and state), Magellan can support member preferences in the form of social media and online simulations for those not likely to engage in traditional phone-based and face-to-face care services."

Online peer support also provides Magellan the ability to further enhance its existing support for medical integration. The strategic relationship with OneHealth Solutions will evolve over time to provide support and communities for a wide range of chronic behavioral and medical conditions including, diabetes, stress reduction, asthma, obesity and general caregiver/family support beyond autism, which are available on the OneHealth platform.

Participating Magellan members can now interact 24/7 with members in the following behavioral health communities:

  • Addiction (forms of substance abuse and chemical dependency, and process addictions such as eating, sex, gambling, spending, etc.), and certain Family Support (Al-Anon, Adult Children of Alcoholics, Nar-Anon, and Codependents Anonymous)
  • Eating Disorders (e.g. Anorexia and/or Bulimia)
  • Depression
  • Anxiety

Peer Support Pilot

In 2012, Magellan conducted a pilot program with a large health plan utilizing OneHealth Solutions' addiction platform and peer support. The pilot resulted in very positive outcomes:

  • The duration of engagement over a several month period exceeded expectations by two fold
  • The repeated number of times each participant engaged with the solution online was significantly higher than our experience for many other programs
  • The Net Promoter Score for members who would recommend the services to others was double what we expected and higher than industry averages

OneHealth Solutions CEO Bruce Springer said, "Magellan's member engagement metrics and pilot results demonstrate a high degree of interest by members to utilize online peer support services as a means for sustained recovery and health management. Magellan is the first behavioral health provider to offer technology-enabled peer support and community-based services to its entire customer base. We are excited about this strategic relationship and looking forward to more innovation as we implement solutions more broadly with Magellan to improve health outcomes."

For more information about Magellan's peer support services please contact Joseph M. Kean at jmkean@MagellanHealth.com.

About Magellan Health Services

Headquartered in Avon, Conn., Magellan Health Services Inc. is a leading specialty health care management organization with expertise in managing behavioral health, radiology and pharmacy programs. Magellan delivers innovative solutions to improve quality outcomes and optimize the cost of care for those we serve. As of September 30, 2012, Magellan's customers include health plans, employers and government agencies, serving approximately 33.8 million members in our behavioral health business, 17.3 million members in our radiology benefits management segment, and 8 million members in our medical pharmacy management product. In addition, the specialty pharmaceutical segment served 40 health plans and several pharmaceutical manufacturers and state Medicaid Programs. The Company's Medicaid Administration segment served 24 states and the District of Columbia. For more information, visit www.MagellanHealth.com.

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Magellan Health Services Inc.
Joseph M. Kean, 860-507-1923
jmkean@magellanhealth.com