Equip Health

Equip Health is a virtual provider for eating disorder treatment that coordinates care among five specialists: a therapist, a medical provider, a registered dietitian, a family mentor, and a peer mentor. The service treats all eating disorders, including anorexia, bulimia, binge eating disorder, ARFID, and OSFED. Care is delivered entirely online, with no waitlist, and is covered by most major insurance plans.

How care works

Equip assigns each patient a fixed team of five providers, each with a distinct role. The therapist conducts individual and family therapy; the medical provider monitors physical health and medical complications; the dietitian addresses nutrition and mealtime behavior; the family mentor offers practical guidance to parents and caregivers who have lived through an eating disorder in their family; the peer mentor provides support and understanding from someone in personal recovery. All five providers have access to the same patient record and coordinate treatment in one app, so there is no need to repeat information across separate providers or navigate separate portals. This unified team structure is a core part of Equip's model, marketed as reducing miscommunication and ensuring consistent care goals across all five specialists.

An initial consultation is free and lasts 15 minutes. The company offers group sessions daily on topics relevant to both patients and support persons. The site mentions that patients often see immediate improvement in weight and symptoms within the first eight weeks of treatment. Matching to providers is handled by Equip; the site does not publish details of how switching providers works if a patient requests a change, though it does address this in FAQs the site mentions but does not display in the captured pages.

All sessions are virtual, taking place over video, chat, or messaging within the Equip app. The service is described as taking a family-based therapy approach, which emphasizes empowering parents and caregivers as agents of recovery rather than viewing them as bystanders. The company covers inpatient, residential, and outpatient care models, though the specifics of how levels of care differ and when each is appropriate are not described in the page.

The platform covers patients across all 50 states and accepts a large network of insurance plans. Patients are encouraged to use the site's coverage checker to see whether their specific plan and state combination is in-network. For patients without insurance or seeking out-of-network care, pricing is not published on the site without an estimate from the company. One patient testimonial notes that insurance covered therapy and that the copay was affordable, but no standard or range is stated.

The company emphasizes that it treats all eating disorder diagnoses, explicitly naming anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID), and other specified feeding or eating disorder (OSFED). The service also addresses co-occurring depression and anxiety, which are common in people with eating disorders.

What Equip's data shows

Equip publishes specific outcomes on its main page. After the first eight weeks of treatment, the company reports that patients on average achieve a weekly weight gain of 1 lb if weight restoration is clinically indicated. Eight in ten patients report a decrease in eating disorder behaviors. Seventy-four percent report improvements with depression or anxiety. The site states that "the vast majority of patients achieve necessary weight restoration" and improve to "subclinical levels of eating disorder symptoms," a term meaning symptom severity drops below the threshold for a clinical diagnosis, though "subclinical" does not mean symptom-free.

On its insurance page, Equip lists coverage by most major commercial insurance plans and Medicaid. Specific plans named include UnitedHealthCare, Optum, Cigna, Aetna, Anthem, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Magellan, Carelon, and Centene, among many others. Aetna plans in every state are listed, as are Anthem plans across multiple states. The site displays plans state by state, allowing visitors to check their specific coverage, but does not list all state abbreviations or all plan names in full.

No published prices appear on the site. The site does not state copay amounts, deductible details, out-of-pocket maximums, or out-of-network fees, though patient testimonials mention that insurance covered therapy and that one patient's copay was "extremely affordable" after insurance payment.

What the pages don't address

Equip does not publish pricing for self-pay patients or those seeking out-of-network care. The site does not state whether providers are employed by Equip or are independent contractors. It does not list the credentials of providers, such as whether therapists hold an LCSW, LMFT, or other license, or whether dietitians are registered dietitian nutritionists (RDNs). Whether the medical provider is a nurse practitioner, physician's assistant, or physician is not disclosed.

The site does not explain how Equip determines which level of care is appropriate (outpatient versus intensive outpatient versus higher levels). It does not state a typical treatment duration or total cost before insurance. It does not discuss what happens if a patient wants to switch to a different provider on the team or how long a provider swap takes.

Wait times and appointment availability are not addressed, though the company emphasizes "no waitlist" on its homepage.

Who it fits

Equip fits patients with any eating disorder who have reliable internet, are comfortable with fully virtual care, and have insurance that the platform accepts. The service is explicitly designed for families, with a family mentor as part of the core team and separate daily group sessions for parents and caregivers. The service has documented outcomes for teenagers (testimonials include a 13-year-old with ARFID and a 16-year-old with anorexia) and adults up to at least age 45.

Equip does not fit patients without internet access or those who need in-person medical monitoring that cannot be done remotely. Patients without insurance or with plans Equip does not accept will need to pay out-of-pocket, and pricing is not published. Patients already in residential treatment or hospitalization would likely need a higher level of care than Equip provides. Patients who are severely malnourished and medically unstable may also need inpatient hospitalization before or alongside outpatient treatment with Equip.

The service explicitly states it treats ARFID (avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder), making it relevant for children and teens with selective eating that does not involve body image or weight concerns. For patients with long-standing disordered eating who have not responded to standard outpatient therapy, the multidisciplinary team approach may offer a more coordinated care experience than juggling separate therapists, dietitians, and doctors.