What Insurance Does Alma Take? Aetna, Cigna, UHC, BCBS

Disclosure: Mindkindly is an Alma affiliate partner. If you book through our Alma links, we may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. It never affects our rankings or reviews.

If you are asking what insurance Alma takes, the short version is above. The details matter, because Alma insurance coverage depends on three things: your specific plan, the therapist you choose, and where you are during your session.

Alma is a directory of more than 26,000 licensed clinicians in all 50 states, and part of Spring Health since May 2026. Alma says 98% of its therapists accept insurance. Each therapist runs a private practice and chooses which plans to accept. Clients pay Alma no subscription or platform fee; therapists pay Alma a monthly membership fee. We checked every insurer and state below against Alma’s website and help center on November 3, 2026.

What insurance does Alma take?

A plan in this table means Alma, as a company, participates with that insurer. Your specific plan may still not be covered, and not every Alma therapist takes every plan, so filter the directory by yours. Medicare and Medicaid have their own answers below.

Does Alma take Aetna?

Yes. Alma participates with Aetna and these plans it groups under Aetna: Allied Benefit Systems, Christian Brothers Services, Health Scope, Meritain, Nippon, Trustmark, and Trustmark Small Business Benefits.

Not included: Aetna CVS, Aetna Medicare and Medicaid plans, GEHA through Aetna, First Health, and several smaller administrators. GEHA members may be eligible only when UnitedHealthcare Shared Services manages their mental health benefits.

Does Alma take Cigna?

Yes. Alma has therapists who take Cigna, but each therapist chooses their own plans, so filter the directory by your exact Cigna plan to see who does.

Alongside Cigna, Alma names Allegiance, Daniel H. Cook Administrators, Paragon Benefits, Professional Benefit Administrators, Southwest Service Administrators, S&S Healthcare Strategies, Tall Tree Administrators, Trustmark, and Wellfleet Group.

Not included: Flume Health, Florida Health Administrators, Gilsbar TPA, HealthPartners, Magnolia Health, Priority Health, and UPMC Health Plan.

Does Alma take UnitedHealthcare?

Yes. Alma groups UnitedHealthcare under Optum, along with Oxford, Oscar, UMR, Surest, All Savers, UHC Student Resources, UnitedHealthcare Shared Services, Health Plans Inc., the NYC Employees PPO Plan, and Medica (commercial policies only). Its lists also name Optum Medicare Advantage, which we cover under Medicare below.

When you add your insurance, Alma asks you to pick the specific plan name, such as Oscar, rather than Optum. Its provider list excludes a few Optum-related plans: Health Plans of Nevada, Cenpatico, Sierra Health and Life, and Arizona Complete Health.

Does Alma take Blue Cross Blue Shield or Anthem?

In some states. Blue Cross Blue Shield plans are run by separate regional companies, so the name on your card decides.

Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield: Colorado, Connecticut, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York (formerly Empire), Ohio, Virginia, and Wisconsin. If you have an Anthem PPO with extended benefits, Alma says you may be able to use it as long as you are physically in the state where your provider is credentialed during the session.

Anthem Blue Cross of California: Alma’s client plan list shows this plan as a heading with no details under it. Its provider list says therapists must be located in California and see clients virtually only to credential with this plan. If you have it, filter the directory by it and ask Alma through the Help button before you book.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Michigan, North Carolina, and Texas: you must be located in that state.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts: in Massachusetts, your benefits apply to in-person and virtual visits. Elsewhere it depends on the therapist: virtual sessions only with a therapist credentialed with Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, or in-person sessions only with a therapist credentialed with their own state’s Blue Cross plan.

If your card mentions Carelon: Alma says some plans, including Kaiser Permanente and Anthem state plans, run mental health benefits through Carelon, so you may be covered even if your Blue Cross plan is not listed.

Alma’s website also names the BCBS Federal Employee Program as a partner, though its help center list does not, so ask first.

Other plans Alma names

Carelon: Carelon Behavioral Health, Sutter Health Plan, and Scripps Health Plan. Alma excludes NYSHIP, WellSense, Unicare/Wellpoint, and Humana, along with state or community plans such as 1199SEIU. Emblem is mixed: the client list excludes it, while the provider list includes Emblem PPO and excludes Emblem HMO, so ask first.

Point32Health (Harvard Pilgrim and Tufts Health Plan): you must be in Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, or Vermont during your session. Only a limited number of Alma therapists are credentialed with these plans, and Alma says it is not adding more, so filter the directory by your plan before you get attached to a profile.

Humana and TRICARE: neither appears among the plans Alma says it participates with. Humana and TRICARE East do appear on its website in a second list, headed Other Insurance, which the site does not explain. Alma’s help center says that if it is not in network with your plan, you may still be able to see a provider through out-of-network benefits or private pay, so confirm with the therapist and your insurer how billing will work.

Others on Alma’s website: its homepage partner list also names plans its help center lists do not, including Medical Mutual of Ohio, Johns Hopkins Health Plans, and Providence Health Plan. If you have one of these, filter the directory by it and confirm with your insurer.

Does Alma take Medicare?

Not Original Medicare, as far as Alma’s pages show. A UnitedHealthcare or Optum Medicare Advantage plan may work, but Alma’s own pages do not agree. Here is what each said on November 3, 2026.

The participating plans list names Optum Medicare Advantage among its Optum plans, then says further down that Alma does not accept Medicare or Medicaid plans. It also excludes Aetna Medicare plans by name.

The help article on why a plan may not participate says Alma “currently supports Optum Medicare Advantage and dual-eligible clients,” meaning people with both Medicare and Medicaid.

The plan list for providers also names Optum Medicare Advantage, and excludes Aetna Medicare and Medicaid plans.

The homepage lists Optum Medicare and UnitedHealthcare Medicare among its insurance partners, with plain Medicare under Other Insurance.

None of these pages says Alma’s insurance program takes Original Medicare. If you have a UnitedHealthcare or Optum Medicare Advantage plan, it may work, so ask Alma through the Help button and call your plan before you book. Our guide to online therapy by insurance lists platforms that say they take Original Medicare.

Does Alma accept Medicaid?

Not on its own. Alma’s help center says it does not support standalone Medicaid plans, and its participating plans list says it does not accept Medicaid plans, excluding Aetna Medicaid plans by name. The one exception it mentions is people with both Medicare and Medicaid, and given the conflict above, confirm that with Alma first.

Its website’s Other Insurance list does name CT Medicaid and Husky, Connecticut’s Medicaid and CHIP program, without explaining what that means. If you have either, ask Alma and the therapist before you book.

If you have Medicaid, a community mental health center is often the most direct route. Your Medicaid plan can tell you who is in network, and SAMHSA’s free, confidential National Helpline, 1-800-662-4357, can refer you to local care. Our guide to online therapy that takes Medicaid covers the platforms that take some Medicaid plans.

Out-of-network care, superbills, and EAPs

If Alma does not take your plan, you can still see an Alma therapist at their self-pay rate. Each therapist sets their own, and many offer a sliding scale. You can also pay with HSA, FSA, or HRA cards.

Superbills. If your plan has out-of-network benefits, it may reimburse part of the cost. When your therapist uses Alma billing, Alma emails a superbill on the first of each month covering the sessions you paid for the month before, and you submit it to your insurer yourself. It does not guarantee reimbursement, so ask your insurer what it covers first.

Employee Assistance Programs. Alma’s help center lists four in-network EAPs: Optum Live & Work Well, Optum Emotional Wellbeing Solutions Premium, Cigna Confide Enhanced, and Aetna Resources for Living. Its website also mentions Carelon, so ask if yours is a Carelon EAP. Sessions are free to you, typically for 3 to 10 visits. Confirm your eligibility and authorization code with your EAP, because Alma does not check EAP benefits for you.

How Alma’s cost estimate works

With several major insurers, Alma can show an estimated cost per session before you book. Its FAQ names Aetna, Cigna, Optum, Oscar, Oxford, and UnitedHealthcare, and its help center also names Blue Cross Blue Shield.

If your deductible applies, you pay the therapist’s full contracted rate until you meet it, which Alma puts at $130 to $380 a session for most providers. If it does not, you pay your copay or coinsurance. Alma says insured clients pay $20 a session on average, a figure it has tied to sessions from October to December 2025, late in the year, when many people have already met their deductible. Sometimes the estimate comes only after you pick a therapist, because Alma has to check your benefits manually.

An estimate is not a bill. Your insurer sets the final amount when it processes the claim, which Alma says typically takes 45 to 60 days. Our guide to how much Alma costs covers deductibles, refunds, and adjusted invoices.

How to check if Alma takes your plan

1. Read your insurance card. Note the exact plan name, which Blue Cross company issued it, and whether the back mentions Optum or Carelon.

2. Search Alma’s directory. Enter your location and select your plan to see therapists who accept it. Alma notes that seeing your plan there does not guarantee coverage.

3. Run the cost estimator if your insurer is supported, and screenshot the result.

4. Call your insurer. Use the number on your card and ask for mental health. Ask whether this specific therapist is in network for your plan, what your copay or coinsurance is, and whether your deductible applies. Get a call reference number.

5. Book a free 15-minute consultation. Alma says most of its therapists offer one, though its location pages say some or many, so check the profile. Ask the therapist to confirm they are credentialed with your plan in the state where you will be during sessions.

6. Add your insurance. Submit your primary plan only, since Alma does not bill secondary insurance. If Alma partners with your insurer, it verifies your eligibility before your first visit and emails your estimated cost. If it does not, Alma cannot verify your coverage, so confirm with your therapist that they take your plan.

Our walkthrough on how to find a therapist who takes your insurance has more questions to ask on that call.

If you are changing plans for 2027

If you buy your own coverage and are comparing 2027 plans, it helps to check them against Alma while you decide, especially if you already see a therapist there.

On HealthCare.gov, open enrollment runs from November 1, 2026 to January 15, 2027. Choosing a plan by December 15 means coverage can start January 1, and choosing one between December 16 and January 15 means it starts February 1. States that run their own exchanges can set different dates: California’s, for example, runs through January 31. Please confirm your dates on HealthCare.gov or your state’s exchange.

Check the exact plan, not just the insurer. Alma says insurers often offer several plans and not every one participates. Filter the directory by the plan name you are considering, and ask your therapist whether they will be in network with it.

Expect your costs to change. A new plan can mean a new deductible, so early sessions may cost more until you meet it.

Update Alma when the plan starts. A plan only covers care once it is active, so add the new details in the Alma portal when it begins. Alma also suggests checking with your insurer for any gap between an old plan ending and a new one starting.

The billing caveat

Billing is a recurring theme in Alma’s Better Business Bureau complaints, including copays that changed after the fact. The usual cause is the gap described above: an estimate before your session, and a claim your insurer processes weeks later. So confirm your coverage with your insurer, keep any estimate Alma shows you, and read the Explanation of Benefits you get after each session.

If an estimate looks wrong, request a review in the client portal. Alma has no general support phone line, though clients can request a call through the Help button. Our Alma review covers the complaints in detail, and is Alma legit looks at its track record.

Free and low-cost options

If self-pay is out of reach, these cost little or nothing.

Community mental health centers and community health centers. Many federally funded health centers charge on a sliding scale based on income and offer mental health care. Search HRSA’s Find a Health Center or FindTreatment.gov.

University training clinics, where supervised therapists in training see clients at lower rates.

Another directory. Headway lists a different mix of plans; see Alma vs Headway.

What is the Alma charge on my credit card?

Alma bills clients on behalf of its therapists, so session charges come from Alma. Its help center says clients who use insurance must enroll in Autopay, except in Connecticut. Your card is charged after your therapist submits a session, typically within 24 hours of the invoice, or for a cancellation or no-show fee your therapist sets. If your insurer later changes what you owe, Alma emails you at least 10 days before charging the difference. Alma emails a receipt for each payment and keeps your payment history in the client portal, so match any charge to those. We could not find a help center page that says how charges are labeled on a card statement, so if one does not line up, contact Alma through the Help button.

The bottom line

Alma takes Aetna, Cigna, UnitedHealthcare and other Optum plans, Anthem in 12 states, and Blue Cross Blue Shield in five. Medicare is limited and inconsistently described, and standalone Medicaid is out. Coverage varies by state, plan, and therapist, so check the directory, call your insurer, and keep records. We rate Alma 8.0 out of 10 in our Alma review.

Sources

• Alma: insurance partners, average insured cost, and share of therapists who accept insurance
• Alma: FAQs
• Alma: how it works
• Alma: what to expect from a therapy consultation
• Alma Help Center: Alma’s participating insurance plans
• Alma Help Center: can I use my insurance plan at Alma?
• Alma Help Center: why Alma does not participate with your insurance plan
• Alma Help Center: insurance plans available through Alma (for providers)
• Alma Help Center: common reasons your insurance may not cover therapy
• Alma Help Center: use your Point32Health plan with Alma
• Alma Help Center: primary and secondary insurance coverage
• Alma Help Center: use Alma’s cost estimator tool
• Alma Help Center: how Alma verifies your insurance benefits and estimates your cost
• Alma Help Center: how billing works, from claim to invoice
• Alma Help Center: request a review of your eligibility or cost estimate
• Alma Help Center: add your insurance information
• Alma Help Center: contact your insurance carrier
• Alma Help Center: out-of-network care at Alma
• Alma Help Center: find and use your superbill
• Alma Help Center: use your Employee Assistance Program at Alma
• Alma Help Center: use FSA, HSA, or HRA funds to pay for Alma sessions
• Alma Help Center: how to review and pay your invoice
• Alma Help Center: enroll in Autopay
• Alma Help Center: download your invoice receipt
• Alma Help Center: track your support requests
• Spring Health: Spring Health and Alma complete combination
• Better Business Bureau: Alma (Spring Health) complaints
• HealthCare.gov: dates and deadlines for 2027 coverage
• HealthCare.gov: the Marketplace in your state
• CMS: plan year 2027 Marketplace plans and prices
• Covered California: open enrollment for 2027
• Connecticut: HUSKY Health
• SAMHSA: National Helpline
• FindTreatment.gov (SAMHSA)
• HRSA: Find a Health Center
• HRSA: what is a health center?

One important note: if you are in crisis or considering harming yourself, please reach out now. In the US, call or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. Immediate human support is available.