Therapy clients don’t live their lives in sessions; they live them in the hours and days in between. The most beneficial work can happen during this in-between time: responding to triggers, practicing coping skills, completing valuable homework and exercises. But it is also when clients are most vulnerable, when crises emerge and coping strategies are tested.
The cost of this inter-session gap is staggering. It’s one reason why 40–60% of psychotherapy clients drop out of treatment before processing it with their therapist and meeting their goals. Early dropout rates also harm clinical outcomes and create a constant, stressful treadmill of client acquisition for providers.
Closing the Gap Through Connected Care
ReliefAI Health is a remote therapeutic monitoring (RTM) solution designed to extend the therapeutic relationship beyond the session. Available as a mobile app, it integrates clinically validated cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) directly into prescribable treatment plans for mental health clinicians. Incubated as a part of the innovation program at LG NOVA, LG Electronics’ North American Innovation Center, ReliefAI Health gives providers a fuller picture of a client’s experience between appointments.
Operating within the FDA’s framework for Software as a Medical Device, the tool is built for mental healthcare practitioners to provide to their clients, allowing the client to track their treatment progress on a daily or even hourly basis. Clients can navigate the user-friendly app to track their moods, voice-journal with AI insights, and participate in therapist-assisted CBT goal setting, building a more thorough view of the client’s mental health and well-being. More insights help providers better manage ongoing issues and triggers while uncovering underlying causes of behavior, resulting in more effective care and reduced dropout rates.
The Policy Shift Creating New Possibilities
Research shows that guided web-based intervention tools like ReliefAI can reduce client dropout rates by close to 2.7 times (72% over 26%) compared to unguided web-based intervention tools.
Guided digital structured support solutions help providers improve client retention, outcomes, and revenue, without adding to their caseload.
Recent policy shifts by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have created a new reimbursement opportunity for digital mental health platforms. CMS now recognizes RTM billing codes, allowing qualified healthcare professionals to bill for the monitoring of non-physiological data and therapy outside of traditional sessions, including adherence to CBT programs, response to therapy, and client-reported outcomes.
Providers can now bill for the time they spend outside of clinical hours reviewing client progress, adjusting treatment plans, and checking in. And with automated delivery and billing for RTM services, therapists can increase their revenue by leveraging Software as a Medical Device (SaMD) solutions like ReliefAI.
What RTM Reimbursement Can Look Like in Practice
For practices evaluating whether to integrate a digital RTM platform, the following sample billing formula illustrates current CMS average reimbursements per client, per year:
- RTM Onboarding: Setup and education = $21.71 reimbursement
- Monthly Device Supply: Client logs data 16+ days a month on the app = ~$50 per client per month (=$600 over 12 months)
- Monthly Monitoring Management: Provider spends 20 minutes per month reviewing the ReliefAI dashboard data and checks in once via phone = $54.11/month (= $649.32 over 12 months)
- Total Annual RTM Revenue per Client: $1,271.03
Please note: The figures above are estimates based on national CMS average reimbursement rates and will vary by payer, state, provider type, and individual client engagement. Providers should consult their billing specialist for practice-specific projections.
~ rate varies between $48 and $58 based on CMS MAC calculation.
This total is per each existing client, meaning providers can increase revenue with their current caseload at zero extra cost to the client.
Seamless, Secure Implementation
Of course, effective RTM tools must integrate seamlessly without creating financial strain for clients or administrative friction for providers.
Introducing digital therapeutics or supplementary clinical apps may have historically meant asking clients to pay out of pocket or forcing clinics to absorb subscription costs, but ReliefAI aligns directly with updated RTM billing pathways. Standard insurance, including Medicare and major commercial payers, covers these codes, meaning clients receive ongoing digital CBT support at no additional cost.
The tool is also designed to act as a clinical partner rather than an additional burden for providers. It includes a comprehensive dashboard that syncs with a practice’s existing electronic health record platform for ease of use and provides therapists with real-time client activity trends, AI-driven alerts, and tools for assigning and monitoring CBT activities.
ReliefAI also includes end-to-end data encryption, role-based access control, and continuous risk assessment to ensure HIPAA compliance.
Building a More Resilient System of Care
Integrating effective RTM platforms into clinical workflows is a fundamental shift toward resilience for both clients and providers today.
It can help clients maintain a protective shield during their most vulnerable inter-session moments, actively driving down the industry’s early dropout rate and raising clinical outcomes.
For providers, it unlocks a highly sustainable, recurring 20% increase in revenue (safely capturing the $1,200-$1,500 per client per year currently left on the table) with zero additional marketing spend or added face-to-face hours.
The math, the clinical evidence, and the federal reimbursement structures are aligned. The inter-session gap is no longer an unavoidable clinical risk: it is one of the greatest opportunities to improve care.
Atul Singh is CEO of ReliefAI Health. To learn more about ReliefAI, visit reliefai.co.
