Network management services organization Advantage Behavioral Health has announced its plans to expand into New York, California and Arizona in 2024.

Advantage Behavioral Health is made up of two provider organizations, Harmony Bay and Victory Bay, which treat mental health conditions, eating disorders and substance use disorders.

In addition to its provider organizations, it has a segment called Advantage Behavioral Health II, which provides back-office services for its mental health provider organizations. These services include billing, HR, marketing, accounting management operations and IT services.

“Our goal, ultimately, is going to be to continue to expand to be a national enterprise,” Colin Studwell, CEO of Advantage Behavioral Health, told Behavioral Health Business. “Right now, we’re operating in seven states; we plan on launching another three this year. We have a model and an operating system that works; it works for our clients and it works for our providers. And we just look forward to carrying that into these new territories that we’re entering.”

The provider has 17 sites with more than 250 therapists offering in-person and virtual care.

Studwell noted that the company has its own management services organization, which handles all of the significant administrative functions in-house, freeing up clinicians to focus on patient care. The MSO handles all billing, scheduling and credentialing for providers.

This system helps with client acquisition and retention–one of the key challenges provider organizations face when planning expansion efforts, Studwell said.

“All the [providers] have to do is show up for the session and complete their clinical note. That way, we have continuity of care,” Studwell said. “That makes it a very appealing option for our providers because the biggest headache associated with private practice is that you do a little bit of everything. If we can eliminate that, it becomes a pretty enticing value proposition for our clinical and medical staff.

The MSO functions also make it easier for patients to access care, he said.

“Then, apply that same model almost verbatim on the client side,” Studwell said. “We will handle scheduling … all you need to do is select the time that works for you, attend your session and focus on getting better.”

This expansion plan comes at a time when many providers are pulling back and taking stock of their assets after the M&A craze of 2021 and 2022.

“[Companies] are taking inventory of what they have bought over the last four or five years and then trying to organize it,” John Minahan, CEO of behavioral health provider Mindful Health Solutions, said at INVEST in October 2023.

Some major players have begun to scale back services and locations. For example, outpatient mental health provider LifeStance (NASDAQ: LFST) announced it would close 70 of its centers in 2023.

Still, Advantage Behavioral Health sees 2024 as a year of growth.

“We did 214,000 patient appointments in 2023,” Studwell said. “We’re anticipating that that will jump to 434,000 this year. So that’s almost going to double it. It’s unbelievable the growth that we’ve seen in the client demand that we’ve seen in this space.”