Aetna Cuts Reimbursement Rates for Alma Therapists, Economic Liberties Responds
TL/DR –
Health insurer Aetna, owned by CVS Health, is set to reduce reimbursement rates for mental health clinicians using practice management company Alma by 30-40%. This move is expected to impact therapists’ ability to accept Aetna health plans, which many patients depend on for mental health care access. The American Economic Liberties Project has called for Congress to pass the Break Up Big Medicine Act to prevent insurance conglomerates from using their market power to squeeze out independent therapists, especially given the current shortage in the behavioral health workforce.
Response to Aetna’s Reduction in Reimbursement Rates for Alma Therapists by American Economic Liberties Project
News indicates that Aetna, a health insurance company under CVS Health, plans to reduce reimbursement rates for mental health clinicians using Alma. This move could force therapists to stop accepting Aetna health plans, affecting many patients’ access to affordable mental health services. The American Economic Liberties Project calls for Congressional support for the Break Up Big Medicine Act to prevent such actions from insurance conglomerates.
Aetna’s Market Power and Impacts
As the third-largest health insurer in the U.S, Aetna can use its market influence to demand low reimbursement rates from independent providers. Its owner, CVS Health, which also controls CVS Caremark, CVS Pharmacy, and Oak Street Health, reported profits of $1.8 billion in 2025. Alma, a practice management company used by over 24,000 mental health clinicians in all 50 states, recently completed its acquisition by Spring Health.
Concerns Raised by Practice Management Companies
For-profit practice management companies like Alma raise concerns among therapists about patient privacy, undisclosed ownership by insurers, and undisclosed fees, mirroring issues with other healthcare middlemen. Policymakers should consider structural reforms addressing practice management companies, such as strengthening state prohibitions on the corporate practice of medicine and enacting a federal ban on the same, using Oregon’s 2025 law as a template.
Call for Structural Reforms
The Economic Liberties has been advocating for such structural reforms since 2024, in white papers and the popular press. In 2025, the organization launched the Break Up Big Medicine initiative, uniting independent healthcare professionals, patient advocates, employers, and policy experts in support of industry-wide structural reforms. Learn more about the initiative here and about Economic Liberties here.
—
Read More Health & Wellness News ; US News