ThoughtFull, a digital mental health platform based in Southeast Asia, has teamed up with life insurers from AIA Malaysia (AIA) to enrich corporate insurance with end-to-end mental health support – AIA plans to integrate ThoughtFull’s mental health care capabilities into its Corporate Solutions portfolio. This marks the first-of-its-kind collaboration in Asia that will empower organisations to address their employees’ mental wellbeing with personalised mental health resources, reaching beyond the traditional insurance coverage for mental health conditions.
With evidence-based frameworks focusing on the spectrum of preventive to crisis support, the partnership will tap into ThoughtFull’s existing expertise in organisational wellbeing. ThoughtFull will offer seamless access to digital support services to facilitate mental health care around the clock.
Together, both ThoughtFull and AIA will deliver improved stress, anxiety and depression management to corporate policyholders and their employees, unlocking new avenues for users to proactively engage with their mental health.
“Physical health and illnesses have traditionally been widely covered by insurance but the same can’t be said for mental health and illnesses in this region. This coverage gap, and consequently, the inherent costs of seeking mental health and well-being services have been a barrier to access for many,” said Joan Low, Founder and CEO of ThoughtFull.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the COVID-19 pandemic triggered a 25% increase in the global prevalence of anxiety and depression in its first year alone. Despite rising attention to and prioritisation of mental health care globally, some 81% of employees reported feeling at risk of burnout this year.
Another survey by Mercer Marsh Benefits has identified a gap between Asia insurers and their global counterparts when it comes to the provision of mental health support, where one in three do not provide mental health coverage as part of their plans.
“We’ve long been advocates of the importance of mental health in the workplace and we believe that it should be given just as much priority as we do to physical health; which is why we are really excited to partner with ThoughtFull to bring new and innovative mental health services to our corporate clients and their employees, under our WorkWell with AIA proposition,” said Tung Hsiao Ley, Chief Corporate Solutions Officer, AIA Malaysia.
“Our decision to work with ThoughtFull was an easy one. Having experienced their services ourselves since the start of the pandemic, we saw first-hand the benefits that they had brought to our own employees through their genuine and seamless approach. As one of the country’s largest employee benefits providers, we are optimistic of the positive change this partnership will bring to our ongoing efforts of enabling a healthier, happier and more productive workforce in Malaysia,” added Hsiao Ley.