Austin, TX, Oct.  10, 2023  (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Today, in conjunction with World Mental Health Day, the Texas Restaurant Association announced a new partnership with multinational telemedicine healthcare company Teladoc Health to provide access to critical health care. HealthiestYou by Teladoc is a comprehensive bundle of physical and mental health services that every restaurant can provide to their employees and their families for $12 a month ($9 a month for TRA members). Over 70% of restaurant workers report high levels of stress and burnout, and nearly one-third report symptoms of depression. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 34% of the leisure and hospitality workforce across the US has access to healthcare benefits.

“Accessing healthcare has always been a challenge for our industry with a majority of operators being small business owners who seek a scalable solution in an environment built for large companies, oftentimes resulting in workers facing unaffordable premiums, or ineligibility due to part-time status,” Emily Williams Knight Ed.D., president and CEO of the Texas Restaurant Association, said. “We do not have time to wait for change; we need to create change so we can protect and grow our industry’s most valuable asset—our people. Thanks to our Teladoc partnership, every Texas restaurant can afford a solution that delivers unlimited virtual physical and mental healthcare visits to their team members and their entire household. The wellbeing of our foodservice community remains a top priority for the Texas Restaurant Association, and we will continue to create new ways to honor that commitment.”

Employees enrolled in HealthiestYou by Teladoc will be able to select from a comprehensive range of general and expert medical services, which includes mental health treatment. In 2021, 22.8% (57.8 million) people in the U.S. experienced a form of mental illness, according to the National Alliance on Mental Health.

“The last three years of unprecedented challenges, triumphs, and anxiety have taken a toll on the wellbeing of everyone who calls our foodservice industry home,” Kelsey Erickson Streufert, chief public affairs officer of the Texas Restaurant Association, said. Accessing mental health support can cost hundreds of dollars, even with insurance. We’re proud to provide an alternative that was designed for our industry, ensuring employees, managers, and operators can see a mental health provider at the time they need service and not just when they can afford it.”

HealthiestYou by Teladoc is available to all members of the Texas Restaurant Association for a member-only price of $9 per household with no copays, deductibles, or coinsurance. Non-member foodservice businesses can also enroll their team members for $12 per household, a significant savings compared to the standard non-hospitality telehealth program prices of $49 per month plus additional visit fees.

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Texas Restaurant AssociationFormed in 1937, the Texas Restaurant Association serves as the advocate and indispensable resource for the foodservice industry in Texas. As a leading business association, the TRA represents the state’s $95 billion restaurant industry, which encompasses upwards of 55,000 locations and a workforce of over 1.4 million employees. Along with the Texas Restaurant Foundation, the workforce development arm of the TRA, the association proudly continues to protect, advance, and educate a growing industry as the TRA enters its 86th year. For more information, please visit www.txrestaurant.org.

NEW ACCESS TO AFFORDABLE, UNLIMITED PHYSICAL AND MENTAL

The Texas Restaurant Association has partnered with Teladoc Health to provide access to affordable, unlimited health care for its members' employees and their families through Teladoc Health's HealthiestYou program.