San Francisco, CA, Oct. 29, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cravings, stress and isolation don’t keep office hours. Ria Health, the nationwide telehealth provider of alcohol use disorder treatment, is making sure its patients never face those moments alone. Through a new partnership with CHESS Health, every Ria Health patient now has 24/7 access to the Connections app, giving them peer support, a moderated recovery community and crisis response any time of day or night, wherever they live.
Ria Health has built its model around meeting people where they are. Patients receive medical care, coaching and medication support from home, and can pursue goals ranging from cutting back to quitting entirely. Adding Connections closes the remaining gap: the hours and days between appointments.
“Recovery doesn’t happen on a schedule,” said Sarah Doyle, LCSW, Vice President of Clinical Operations at Ria Health. “The hardest moments often come late at night, on a weekend, or over a holiday, when no clinic is open. Many of our patients don’t have an in-person recovery community nearby, and some aren’t ready to walk into one. Connections gives them a place to turn for real human support the moment they need it.”
For people with alcohol use disorder, that matters. Stigma, geography and scheduling remain significant barriers to care. In 2024, just 7.5% of adults with past-year AUD received treatment. Ria Health selected Connections to keep patients engaged between visits, strengthen retention and support lasting behavior change.
The partnership also extends the reach of Ria Health’s care teams. “Our clinicians can see how patients are doing between sessions and step in sooner, without adding administrative burden,” Doyle said. “It lets our team spend their time on what matters most: delivering high-quality care.”
“Ria Health is showing what modern alcohol treatment looks like: accessible, stigma-free and built around the person,” said Hans Morefield, CEO of CHESS Health. “With Connections, their patients have a community of peers and tools to lean on in the moments that matter most, and their care teams can extend support well beyond the clinical visit.”
Connections, part of CHESS Health’s eRecovery solution, offers 24/7 peer support, moderated discussion forums, crisis response, virtual support meetings, daily check-ins, educational and motivational content, and care management tools that connect patients with their care teams.
About Ria Health
Ria Health, based in San Francisco, CA, is a team of medical professionals, technology experts, and start-up veterans, dedicated to removing stigma and making a positive change in how addiction is treated. Its program combines science-backed methods with new technology to deliver care wherever members are, and it has helped almost 23k people moderate or quit drinking.
About CHESS Health
CHESS Health is a leading provider of effective, turnkey, evidence-based digital behavioral health solutions backed by peer support. These tools empower providers, health plans, and public sector organizations to address the substance use disorder crisis by enhancing prevention, facilitating care coordination, and improving adherence to care plans and treatment retention—ultimately resulting in better health outcomes. For more information, visit www.chess.health.
Sarah Doyle, Vice President of Clinical Operations Ria Health 510-854-0989 sarah.doyle@riahealth.com
