What’s The Future of Behavioral Health?

Nick Torres, PSIJ co-founder

Last week, a New Mexico radio talk show highlighted that the biggest provider of mental health was the county jails. We know that is a sign of systemic dysfunction. The question is how to correct it.

In Philadelphia, they are starting to tackle this issue with a meeting to discuss What's the Future of Behavioral Health in Light of the Disruptive Innovation of Healthcare Reform? on April 28. The meeting is sponsored by the Philadelphia Social Innovations Journal, Thomas Scattergood Foundation, City of Philadelphia Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services, Public Health Management Corporation, Beck Institute of Cognitive Therapy and Open Minds. (You can register here.)

In the announcement of their meeting, they describe the problem and opportunity:

The implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA) place mental health, for the first time, at the forefront of healthcare financing issues in parity with prevention and primary healthcare. For many years there has been a separation of the mind from the body, both from a philosophical and practice perspective. This division has led to a dichotomy in care provided to individuals with behavioral and physical health needs (whether recovery or treatment models), in addition to payment methods for services received. Yet, mental health constitutes a major chronic illness and a significant healthcare expenditure, totaling more than $125 billion in federal dollars a year (not counting some level of private and commercial dollars). Many suggest that there are serious dysfunctions in both systems and that the new integration of primary care and behavioral health may present answers in assuring a more responsive and coherent system of care.

The panelists at this meeting will take a closer look how both the behavioral and physical health systems under broad healthcare reform will need to adjust to become integrated.

This meeting promises to help inform our efforts to make sure young people are Connected by 25 by exploring how we use the ACA to help them access mental health services and align systems so that mental health services are part of early intervention, before kids get pushed into the deep end of the justice system.