For commercial health plans
Better digestive outcomes start with the gut-brain connection.
Nerva reduces avoidable GI costs for members with persistent symptoms and repeat visits through an evidence-based, on-demand six-week program with fees tied to outcomes.
- 300,000+ people supported
- 8,000 active US providers
- RCT published in the AJG1
GI is already one of your largest condition costs.
Persistent digestive symptoms disrupt daily life and drive repeat care, even after serious disease has been ruled out.
2021 US GI healthcare expenditure
$111.8B
annual GI healthcare spend.12
- of adults met criteria for a gut-brain disorder.13
- >40%
- reason adults visit the ED: stomach and abdominal pain.15
- #1
Functional GI is a large part of GI utilization, but the pathway is built for structural disease.
Functional GI includes IBS, dyspepsia, constipation, diarrhea and bloating. Clinical guidelines recommend gut-brain behavioral therapies, but specialist access is limited. Members wait or miss care, then cycle through scopes, imaging, medications and ED visits.3,17
Why claims repeat
- 1Persistent symptoms
- 2Repeat visits, tests and ED
- 3Clear structural work-up
Where Nerva intervenesGut-brain behavioral care at population scale.
The solution
Evidence-based gut-brain care for persistent digestive symptoms.
A scalable six-week program that helps members manage symptoms between visits, on demand.
- Multimodal gut-brain care
Expand access beyond specialist capacity
Daily guided sessions combine gut-brain care, diet and GI education, breathing and symptom tracking, without appointments or waitlists.
- AI-guided accountability
Keep more members engaged through completion
AI tailors coaching, accountability and reminders to member preferences and goals, helping them stay on track.
- Outcomes and reporting
Measure the outcomes behind your spend
Validated symptom measures give plans clear reporting on completion and clinical response.
- Clinical governance
Scale care safely across the population
Automated delivery scales access, with screening, warning signs and escalation governed by Nerva’s medical director.
Independent evaluation by PHTI
“Within the evidence reviewed, Nerva presented the strongest overall evidence for improving IBS symptoms.”
Peterson Health Technology Institute (PHTI)Virtual Gastrointestinal Care Solutions, March 20262
81%1of participants met the primary symptom endpoint (≥50-point IBS-SSS improvement), vs 63% on active control.
Randomized controlled trial · N=244 · active control · AJG 2025 Read the research →
- Clinically significant abdominal-pain reduction, vs 35% on control1
- 71%
- Clinical studies on Nerva, indexed on our Research page
- 15+
Research and clinical collaborations
Enrollment and engagement
A nationwide provider network that brings members into care.
8,000 active US providers connect members to Nerva through trusted care relationships. Members start immediately, with no waitlists, and most stay for all six weeks.
- 60%
- program adherence
- 156M
- gut-brain care minutes
- 50
- states
Nerva platform data, August 2026.
Outcome-aligned pricing
Reduce risk with pricing tied to outcomes.
Half the fee is paid when a member starts. The other half is paid only when they achieve the symptom outcome agreed before launch.
250,000 members
$1.1M–$2.2MExpected annual net savings8
$1,276net savings per enrolled member
One program across every line of business
The care stays the same. The economics follow who holds the risk.Start with a measurable health plan pilot.
Track symptom outcomes and claims impact, then scale what works.
References
- Anderson, Ellen J.; Peters, Simone L.; Gibson, Peter R.; Halmos, Emma P. Comparison of Digitally Delivered Gut-Directed Hypnotherapy Program With an Active Control for Irritable Bowel Syndrome. The American Journal of Gastroenterology 120(2):p 440-448, February 2025. DOI: 10.14309/ajg.0000000000002921
- Peterson Health Technology Institute. Virtual Gastrointestinal Care Solutions Assessment. March 2026. PHTI separately estimated $1,889 in net annual healthcare savings per IBS patient for virtual GI care, in a commercial population.
- Lacy, B. E. et al. ACG Clinical Guideline: Management of Irritable Bowel Syndrome. The American Journal of Gastroenterology, 2021.
- Keefer, L.; Bedell, A.; Norton, C.; Hart, A. L. How Should Pain, Fatigue, and Emotional Wellness Be Incorporated Into Treatment Goals for Optimal Management of Inflammatory Bowel Disease? AGA Clinical Practice Update. Gastroenterology, 2022;162:1439–1451.
- British Society of Gastroenterology guidelines on the management of functional dyspepsia. Gut, 2022.
- AGA Clinical Practice Update on functional heartburn and reflux hypersensitivity. Clinical Gastroenterology and Hepatology.
- Combined membership of the health plans and employers Nerva holds contracts with, in the US and Australia. A measure of partner reach rather than the number of members enrolled in or covered for Nerva.
- Nerva actuarial model developed with Accorded, August 2026: expected economics net of the model's expected per-enrollee fee. The range uses 6.75% to 13.5% enrollment across a 10% addressable, 50% eligible and reachable population.
- Peters, S. L.; Yao, C. K.; Philpott, H.; Yelland, G. W.; Muir, J. G.; Gibson, P. R. Randomised clinical trial: the efficacy of gut-directed hypnotherapy is similar to that of the low FODMAP diet for the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome. Alimentary Pharmacology & Therapeutics, 2016;44(5):447–459.
- Stanghellini, V. Functional Dyspepsia and Irritable Bowel Syndrome: Beyond Rome IV. Digestive Diseases, 2018;35(Suppl 1):14–17: functional GI disorders represent 40% of diagnoses in gastroenterological settings. The structural/complex split either side is illustrative.
- Peery, A. F. et al. Burden and Cost of Gastrointestinal, Liver, and Pancreatic Diseases in the United States: Update 2024. Gastroenterology, 2025;168(5):1000–1024. The latest peer-reviewed national estimate found $111.8B in GI healthcare expenditures in 2021.
- Sperber, A. D. et al. Worldwide Prevalence and Burden of Functional Gastrointestinal Disorders, Results of Rome Foundation Global Study. Gastroenterology, 2021;160(1):99–114: over 40% of adults worldwide meet criteria for a disorder of gut-brain interaction (functional gastrointestinal disorder).
- Peters, S. L.; Gibson, P. R.; Halmos, E. P. App-delivered gut-directed hypnotherapy halves the long-term costs associated with managing Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS) symptoms and improves work productivity. Retrospective study of 17,000+ Nerva users, presented at Digestive Disease Week: IBS management costs fell from USD 1,259 to USD 502 over six months. Retrospective completer analysis, not a controlled trial.
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey: stomach and abdominal pain is the most common principal reason for adult emergency department visits. See also Wu et al., Academic Emergency Medicine, 2025, on ED abdominal-pain presentations 2007–2019.
- HIF and Mindset Health member health program partnership, current as at August 2026. Program details and outcome figures are available to funds and plans under discussion.
- Keefer, L.; Palsson, O. S.; Pandolfino, J. E. Best Practice Update: Incorporating Psychogastroenterology Into Management of Digestive Disorders. Gastroenterology, 2018;154(5):1249–1257. DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2018.01.045.