It’s no secret that the impact of COVID is likely to linger for months, if not years. Even as the U.S. reluctantly takes its finger off the Pause button, employees are grappling with the pandemic’s mental health aftershocks. The recent surge in virus variants has only worsened the situation. According to the National Behavioral Consortium (NBC), the leading professional trade association of top-tier Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs), employee requests for mental health support have increased significantly since the advent of COVID, with calls related to anxiety spiking at 70% for one EAP firm. Employee concerns included stress, depression due to social isolation, health fears and even everyday challenges such as finding day care. Throughout the pandemic, NBC’s EAPs were able to meet much of this demand through long- standing clinician networks, online counseling and other mental health services. However, they also developed visionary solutions to address three growing employee needs fueled by the COVID chaos.