NYC Launches Free Online Therapy for Teens With Talkspace Partnership

New York City has launched a complimentary online therapy service for teenagers to enhance their access to mental health resources with Talkspace.

The city’s Health Department will provide these therapy services free of charge to city residents aged 13 to 17 in collaboration with the digital therapy company Talkspace.

Known as “NYC Teenspace,” the initiative allows teens to connect with licensed therapists through messaging, video sessions, and live chats via the Talkspace platform.

For those needing a more mobile solution, the “Talkspace Go” app is a tool for teens to enhance their mental resilience and emotional well-being.

Enrollment in the program is straightforward: teens or their guardians need to fill out a brief questionnaire and provide consent via talkspace.com/nyc. 

Typically, a teen is paired with a therapist within 24 hours of registration.

Participants can engage in one live video session monthly and send unlimited messages to their therapist.

Mayor Eric Adams emphasized the positive impact of the initiative, noting, “With teenage anxiety on the rise, we made clear that New York City would get our young people the help they need and provide teenagers with free tele-mental health services. Six months later, the data shows our efforts are paying off, and we’ve already helped more than 6,800 teenagers get the mental health care they need through ‘NYC Teenspace.'”

Dr. Ashwin Vasan, Commissioner of the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, disclosed that more than 6,800 teenagers from New York City enrolled in the therapy program within the initial six months. 

Among these, 80% self-identified as “Black, Hispanic, Asian American and Pacific Islander, bi-racial or Native American.”  

Vasan stated, “We have torn down some obstacles to care, opened the door to mental health support using a modern approach, and teens are choosing to walk through. We’re stepping up to the challenge of our youth mental health crisis with whatever it takes, because we know we can’t afford to wait, and the cost of inaction is too high.”

The stats also revealed that 70% of the users are female, whereas 23% are male.

Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Anne Williams-Isom stated, “‘NYC Teenspace’ offers a critical tool to support young people, ages 13 to 17, on their smartphones via talk, text, or video chat so they can engage in ways that work for them.” She added, “In the first six months of this initiative, nearly 7,000 young people have signed up, and four out of five users are from Black and Brown communities, which we know were some of the hardest hit during the pandemic. This initiative is just one piece of our broader family and youth mental health strategy.”

To foster greater understanding and participation, Talkspace hosts informational sessions on Zoom every Tuesday and Thursday, providing a platform for parents, teens, and educators to learn more about the program and address their queries.