What You Need for Your First EAP Visit

Overview

Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) are services sponsored by your employer that cover short-term confidential counseling and referrals for mental health care and crisis support. EAPs are an alternative to traditional health insurance. (For more information on which EAPs are currently partnered with Alma and how EAPs typically work, you can review: Using Your EAP Benefits.)

Unlike traditional insurance, where Alma coordinates directly with client health plans to confirm benefits, EAPs give you, as a client, the opportunity to verify your eligibility for benefits directly.

All EAPs require the following three things to process EAP claims for sessions: 

  • A client EAP authorization code
    A  unique code that you can use to apply EAP benefits to specific provider visits.
  • Eligible sessions
    The total number of visits authorized by your employer for EAP coverage. These range from 3-10 visits, with 5 being the average.
  • Benefit effective dates:
    The start and end dates of your EAP eligibility. This is the date you initially requested an authorization code, and the date your approved EAP benefits are set to expire. For example, you could have 5 EAP visits to use within a benefit year starting July 10, 2022 and ending June 1, 2023.

However, individual EAPs provide this information in different ways. Before you start your first EAP session with an Alma provider, follow the steps outlined below to verify your eligibility for your particular EAP. 

How to Access Your EAP Benefit Information

New Clients with Optum Live & Work Well EAP

If you have traditional Optum EAP benefits through the Live & Work Well Employee Assistance Program, you can request an EAP authorization code, eligible sessions, and benefit effective dates by  creating an account and signing into Optum’s benefit website, www.liveandworkwell.com. 

You can also find your benefit effective dates in a secure message from Optum sent to your email inbox once you request the code through Optum’s benefit page. Be sure to check your spam and junk folders for the message if you’re unable to find it in your inbox,

Before starting your Live & Work Well EAP sessions, be sure to share your EAP authorization code, number of eligible sessions, and benefit effective dates directly with your provider. Your provider will need to enter this information into the Alma portal on your behalf to ensure that your Live & Work Well EAP benefits apply correctly to your Alma sessions. 

Please note: Alma cannot request Optum Live & Work Well benefits information on your behalf. You will need to get this information from Optum’s website and communicate it to your provider in order to use your benefits for Alma sessions.

New Clients with Optum Emotional Wellbeing Solutions Premium EAP

As part of the premium service Optum’s Emotional Wellbeing Solutions EAP, you do not have to download or manually transfer your EAP authorization code, benefit effective dates, or number of eligible sessions to your provider.

Instead, if you are new to Alma, you can log into Optum’s benefit portal and search a specialized Alma directory to find a provider in your area who takes Premium EAP benefits. 

As part of the consultation scheduling process, Alma’s platform will automatically receive your EAP authorization code and other EAP information from Optum’s website — no additional steps are needed to verify your eligibility.

New Clients with Cigna Confide Enhanced EAP

You can access your Confide Enhanced EAP authorization code and number of eligible sessions by creating a profile and logging into Cigna’s behavioral health benefits platform. 

  • If you aren’t sure how to access your benefits through Cigna’s website, please reach out to Cigna directly for support. 
  • If you are enrolled in a Cigna EAP but you don’t know if your plan is specifically “Confide Enhanced EAP” (which is in network with Alma’s insurance program), log into the Cigna’s platform to verify your benefit program’s name. 

Once you have accessed your EAP code, number of eligible sessions, and benefit effective dates, you can either 

  • Visit the Cigna Confide Alma landing page first, enter your benefits information, then schedule a consultation
    • Once you enter your authorization code, sessions, and dates into Cigna's Alma landing page, you will see a button to “Explore Providers.” 
    • This button will open a directory of Alma providers in your area who all accept Confide Enhanced EAP. You can select one who seems like a good fit and click “Request a Consultation.”

  • Schedule your consultation through Cigna’s behavioral health portal first, then enter your benefits information through an email link from Alma before your appointment takes place.
    • If you schedule a consultation with an Alma provider through Cigna, you will receive a link in your inbox from Alma to enter your authorization code, sessions, and dates into the Alma portal. 
    • If you do not respond to Alma's email link with authorization information before the consultation date and time, the consultation will automatically be canceled. You will need to reach out to the provider through the Cigna website again to restart the process.

New Clients with Aetna Resources for Living EAP 

You can access your Aetna Resources for Living (RFL) EAP authorization code, number of eligible sessions, and benefit effective dates by creating a profile and logging into Aetna's Resources for Living Platform or contacting the Aetna Resources for Living call center. Please reach out to your employer or HR specialist to obtain this phone number. 

If you choose to contact Aetna RFL’s call center, a representative will complete a member information form on your behalf, then send you a confirmation email with a link to browse Alma’s directory of Aetna RFL providers.

Once you’ve found a provider you’d like to work with in the directory, you can schedule a consultation directly through the Aetna Resources for Living platform, or call center, or submit a consultation request. 

Please note: You are welcome to schedule or request consultations with multiple providers, however, Aetna Resources for Living EAP benefits can only be used with one provider. Once you have been added to a provider’s practice with your benefits, you will not be able to use the same EAP authorization code again.

If you are already seeing an Alma provider, and you want to use your EAP benefits

The process for applying your EAP benefits to Alma sessions is largely the same for new and existing clients with

However, if you are already seeing an Alma provider, and you want to use either

You will need to go through the consultation process on your Optum or Cigna’s benefits page to apply your EAP to sessions with your Alma provider. Here’s how:

Using Optum Emotional Wellbeing Solutions EAP With Your Current Alma Provider

  • Log into Optum’s benefit portal. 
  • Click “Benefits & Services” at the top of the page and select “Employee Benefit Programs” from the drop-down menu.
  • This page will link to a customized Alma directory where you can find your current Alma provider based on their zip code. 
  • Select your provider’s name and choose “Request a Consultation.”
    • We also recommend that you let your provider know directly that you’ve completed this step, so they can look for your consultation request on their end. 
  • Once your provider officially accepts your consultation request in the Alma portal, Optum will automatically transfer your authorization code, benefit effective dates, and eligible number of sessions to your provider for future EAP claims.
  • You will be able to see your Alma provider fully covered, with no copay or coinsurance, for the number of sessions allowed by your benefits.

Using Cigna Confide Enhanced EAP With Your Current Alma Provider

  • First, confirm with your Alma provider that they accept Confide Enhanced EAP benefits. Not all providers who accept Cigna insurance will also accept EAPs. 
  • Then, log into Cigna’s behavioral health benefits portal to access your EAP authorization code, number of sessions, and effective dates. 
    • If you aren’t certain how to access this information, please contact Cigna directly for support. 
  • Enter your Cigna EAP information into your Cigna Confide Enhanced EAP benefits portal to get access to a customized Alma provider directory.
  • Search your current provider’s zip code to pull them up in the directory, then click “Request a Consultation.”
    • We also recommend that you let your provider know directly that you’ve completed this step, so they can look for your consultation request on their end. 
  • Once your provider accepts your consultation request in the Alma portal, Cigna will automatically transfer your authorization code, benefit effective dates, and eligible number of sessions from their website to your provider’s Alma portal.
  • You will be able to see your Alma provider fully covered, with no copay or coinsurance, for the number of sessions allowed by your Confide Enhanced EAP benefits.

Tracking Your EAP Sessions

We also recommend that you track how many EAP sessions you use over time, so that you and your provider can discuss next steps as you reach the end of your EAP benefit. You can read more about how to continue working with your Alma provider beyond EAP here: Continuing care beyond your EAP benefits.

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