Ellie Mental Health

What Ellie Mental Health does

Ellie Mental Health, founded in 2015 in Minnesota by Erin Pash and Kyle Keller, operates a franchise-based network of outpatient mental health clinics that has scaled to more than 240 locations across 36 U.S. states. The company delivers a full spectrum of mental health services — individual, couples, family, and children's therapy alongside specialized modalities such as EMDR, art therapy, trauma-informed therapy, and psychiatric medication management — through a hybrid in-person and HIPAA-compliant telehealth delivery model. Its core technology stack consists of a proprietary Electronic Health Record system with integrated billing deployed across the franchise network, paired with a HIPAA-compliant telehealth platform; these systems are sold to franchisees as part of a turnkey operational package that also includes site selection, payer credentialing across 300+ insurance plans, call-center-driven client intake, and centralized marketing.

The company monetizes through three primary streams: (1) therapy fees and medication management billed to insurance or self-pay clients at the clinic level, which produce subscription-like recurring revenue per client; (2) franchise fees, royalties, and ongoing service charges paid by franchisees for the right to use the Ellie brand, systems, and support infrastructure; and (3) a Community Partnership Program that sells workplace wellness workshops and school-based mental health services to organizations and K-12 districts. Ellie targets individuals and families seeking accessible outpatient mental health care, prospective franchisee-entrepreneurs drawn to the projected 25% growth in outpatient behavioral health by 2035, and corporate/institutional partners. The franchise model — combined with a humor-driven, destigmatizing brand identity amplified through podcasts, YouTube content, and a CEO-hosted talk show — is positioned to address the structural shortage of licensed mental health providers by recruiting clinicians with lower administrative burden and clinical autonomy. Recent corporate events include CEO transition to Michael DiMarco, the April 2026 sale of 23 Minnesota clinics to Sagent Behavioral Health, and ongoing franchisee litigation alleging unmet support obligations.

Name

Ellie Mental Health

Legal name

Ellie Mental Health, PLLP

Website

https://www.elliementalhealth.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Ellie Mental Health is a franchise-based outpatient mental health clinic network operating 240+ locations across 36 U.S. states, delivering individual, couples, family, and children's therapy plus psychiatric services via in-person and HIPAA-compliant telehealth channels. Founded in 2015, it equips franchisees with a proprietary EHR, billing, and credentialing infrastructure.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Outpatient Mental Health Services

NAICS

Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420), Offices of Mental Health Practitioners (except Physicians) (621330), Offices of Physicians, Mental Health Specialists (621112)

SIC

Services-Offices & Clinics Of Doctors Of Medicine (8011)

akta.pro primary industry

Outpatient Mental Health & Counseling Clinics (HLAFABAC)

akta.pro secondary industry

Behavioral & Mental Health Virtual Care (EAP/Teletherapy) (HLALADAB)

Keywords

• Outpatient mental health
• Therapy services franchise
• Behavioral health clinics
• Psychiatric medication management
• Telehealth counseling

Headquarters

HQ city

Saint Paul

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Outpatient Therapy Services: Ellie generates the majority of its revenue through fee-for-service therapy sessions billed to insurance (in-network with 300+ plans) or self-pay clients. Sessions include individual, couples, family, children's therapy, and specialized modalities such as EMDR, art therapy, and trauma-informed therapy. The recurring nature of therapy (typically weekly or biweekly appointments) creates a subscription-like revenue pattern per client.
2. Psychiatric Medication Management: Ellie offers psychiatric prescribing services for ADHD, depression, anxiety, and other conditions, billed through insurance. This service is typically covered by insurance and represents an additional revenue stream tied to ongoing client care.
3. Franchise Fees and Royalties: Ellie sells franchises to independent operators,收取启动费和持续特许权使用费。 Franchisees pay for the right to use the Ellie brand, systems, and support infrastructure. This includes pre-opening support (real estate, finance, site build, marketing, recruitment, training) and ongoing brand development, call center, EHR/billing, and credentialing services.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels10 records

Core offering

Ellie Mental Health operates a franchise network of outpatient mental health clinics delivering in-person and online therapy services across the United States. The company sells individual, couples, family, and children's therapy along with specialized modalities (EMDR, art therapy, trauma-informed therapy) and psychiatric medication management, and licenses its brand, EHR/billing platform, and operational playbook to independent franchisee-owners.

Product overview

Ellie Mental Health is a franchise-based mental health clinic network offering a comprehensive suite of therapy services. The core product portfolio includes individual, couples, family, and children's therapy alongside specialized modalities such as EMDR, trauma-informed therapy, art therapy, and grief counseling. The company operates an online/teletherapy platform via a HIPAA-compliant video system and provides a client portal for appointment and billing access. The franchise platform (Own An Ellie) enables entrepreneurs to open clinics with operational support including a proprietary EHR system with integrated billing. Additional offerings include a Community Partnership Program for workplace wellness, school-based partnerships, and content platforms including podcasts (The Therapist Thrival Guide, When Therapists Watch TV) and a YouTube talk show (Out Loud with Erin Pash). The company was founded in 2015 and operates over 230 clinics across 36 states through a franchise model.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Therapist Thrival Guide: A podcast from Ellie Mental Health hosted by Miranda Barker, LICSW and Dr. Lucas Volini, LMFT, helping therapists move from surviving to thriving.
• When Therapists Watch TV
• Out Loud with Erin Pash
• Live Authentic Magazine
• Ellie Mental Health YouTube
• Ellie Mental Health Franchise
• Ellie Fam LLC

Products and services

• Individual Therapy One-on-one therapy sessions between a client and a licensed Ellie therapist to address personal mental health concerns, develop coping strategies, and work toward individual goals such as anxiety, depression, stress, and trauma.
• Couples Therapy Therapy sessions for dating, engaged, or married partners to address relationship challenges including communication breakdowns, infidelity, trust issues, conflict resolution, and major life transitions.
• Online Therapy (Teletherapy) Virtual therapy sessions delivered via Ellie's HIPAA-compliant telehealth platform, allowing clients to access licensed therapists remotely from any location with internet access.
• Family Therapy Therapy sessions involving family members to address family conflicts, divorce/separation adjustments, grief, mental illness in the family, and improve family communication and boundaries.
• Children's Therapy Mental health therapy services specifically designed for children and adolescents using play therapy, talk therapy, and family involvement to address behavioral disorders, emotional challenges, autism, ADHD, anxiety, trauma, and developmental needs.
• Medication Management (Psychiatry Services) Psychiatric medication prescribing and ongoing management for conditions such as ADHD, depression, and anxiety, offered with or without accompanying therapy and billed through insurance.
• Grief Therapy Specialized therapy for processing grief, loss, and bereavement, helping individuals navigate the emotional journey of mourning.
• Trauma-Informed Therapy Therapeutic approach that recognizes and responds to the impact of traumatic experiences, helping clients process trauma while ensuring safety, empowerment, and trust.
• EMDR Therapy Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing therapy that uses bilateral eye movements to help the brain reprocess traumatic memories.
• Art Therapy Therapeutic approach using creative arts and artistic expression as a modality for healing, allowing clients to communicate and process emotions through art-making.
• Community Partnership Program Workplace and school wellness services delivered to organizations, businesses, and K-12 schools, including personalized wellness consults, live and recorded workshops, on-site therapy, and mental health education.
• Ellie Mental Health Franchise (Own An Ellie) Franchise business opportunity for entrepreneurs to own and operate Ellie Mental Health clinics, with comprehensive support including site selection, build-out, training, the proprietary EHR/billing system, marketing, recruitment, therapist credentialing, and ongoing brand development.

Quantifiable outcome

• New clients are typically matched with a therapist in days — not months — addressing the provider shortage gap
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments9 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Acadia HealthcareminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2025Acadia Healthcare provided support for Ellie Mental Health's free, day-long Animal-Assisted Therapy training event ('Dogs as Healers: Canines in the Mental Health Counseling Setting') held in Peabody, MA, where 40 clinicians earned continuing education credits.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves9 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Spring Health: Global employer mental health benefit provider offering therapy, coaching, and psychiatry. Comparable full-spectrum behavioral health service model delivered primarily through employer contracts.
• Lyra Health: Enterprise mental health benefit platform serving employers and health plans. Comparable in-network therapy delivery and therapy-plus-coaching model, but exclusively B2B rather than consumer/D2C.

Direct peers

• BetterHelp: Largest consumer online therapy platform (Teladoc-owned). Comparable direct-to-consumer mental health brand and broad modality coverage, though telehealth-only with no physical clinic footprint.
• Talkspace: Public online therapy and psychiatry platform serving insured and B2B clients. Comparable in-network + self-pay revenue model and behavioral health modality mix, delivered via telehealth rather than physical clinics.
• LifeStance Health: Largest U.S. outpatient mental health provider with hundreds of clinic locations and a heavy in-network insurance model. Closest direct competitor to Ellie's in-person, in-network, multi-modality outpatient mental health clinic strategy.
• Two Chairs: Operates therapist-staffed mental health clinics in major U.S. metros with a focus on high-quality, full-time employed therapists. Comparable clinic-based outpatient therapy model targeting similar insured/self-pay clients.
• Octave: Outpatient mental health clinic operator in California and select metros, combining therapy and psychiatry under one roof. Closely aligned service mix and clinic model to Ellie's therapy-plus-medication-management approach.

Emerging players

• Cerebral: Online mental health provider combining therapy with ADHD and anxiety medication management. Comparable therapy + psychiatry model, focused on a narrower commercial / cash-pay segment than Ellie's in-network model.
• Brightside Health: Telemedicine mental health platform specializing in depression and anxiety, combining therapy and medication management. Comparable integrated therapy-plus-prescribing service offering on the digital side of the same market.

Others

• Headway: Therapist enablement platform providing insurance credentialing, billing, and EHR to independent mental health providers. Adjacent infrastructure layer serving the same supply side Ellie addresses through its franchise model.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@elliementalhealth
• Facebookfacebook.com/EllieMentalHealth
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/elliementalhealth
• Instagraminstagram.com/elliementalhealth/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Ellie Mental Health