Expanded Mental Health Coverage Under ACA Hasn’t Always Translated To More People Getting Care
In Amador County, which has the state's third-highest suicide rate, there's a common complaint that there aren't enough mental health providers to meet the need.
Capital Public Radio:
Where Are The Psychiatrists? Amador County And Rural California Hit Hardest By Physician Shortage.
Amador County has the state’s third-highest suicide rate, according to the latest rankings from the California Department of Public Health. ... Insurance coverage for mental health services expanded under the Affordable Care Act, but it hasn’t translated to more people getting care. That’s because the supply of providers isn’t keeping up with demand. (Caiola, 8/12)
In other mental health news —
The California Health Report (healthycal.org):
For Low-Income Children, Access To Mental Health Care Varies Sharply By County
Fewer than 2 percent of Medi-Cal-enrolled youth under age 21 in Orange County consistently received a specialty mental health service in fiscal year 2015 to 2016, the most recent year for which such data is available. Only six other counties – Merced, Placer, Yolo, Madera, Marin and Riverside – served fewer youths through SMHS. At the other end of the spectrum are counties like San Francisco. Almost 5 percent of San Francisco’s Medi-Cal enrolled kids came into regular contact with the SMHS system between 2015 and 2016, data show. In fact, San Francisco was among the 14 counties with access rates at least double those of Orange County. While the percentage differences appear small, they represent potentially tens of thousands of kids in lower-performing counties who are missing out on mental health care. For example, if Orange County had the same proportion of kids getting SMHS as San Francisco, 13,000 more children and teens would have received mental health treatment. (Boyd-Barrett, 8/13)