Challenges for Insured Patients in Accessing Behavioral Health Care

The Article in Brief

Challenges for Insured Patients in Accessing Behavioral Health Care

MariaElena Williams , and colleagues

Background A health plan that offers access to clinicians in primary and specialty care is crucial to ensuring access to care.

What This Study Found Researchers found that access to outpatient behavioral health care varies widely; depending on insurance company and level of training, 10 to 59 percent of clinicians can offer a new patient appointment, with psychiatry appointments particularly difficult to schedule. Using a secret shopper method, three researchers made 1,932 calls to behavioral health clinicians affiliated with three major insurance companies. Extrapolating from these findings, the authors estimate that a patient would need to call seven to 10 psychiatrists in order to find an available appointment.

Implications

• Given the stigma and fatigue associated with mental illness, difficulty in obtaining an appointment for behavioral health care is of particular concern.