Politicians and lawmakers have long ignored mental illness and treatment for it. Of the 14 candidates running in the 2024 presidential election, only one specifically mentions improving mental health care on their official campaign website.
Health-care needs continue to be neglected: Despite a surge in self-reported levels of anxiety and depression, and more acceptance of mental struggles since COVID-19, many people who attempt to seek treatment are finding obstacles. Minimal providers, location disparity, limited insurance coverage and overall high costs of treatment, all contribute to the barriers people face in accessing their mental health care.
Given the many people who report struggling with their mental health, state and federal governments need to make this treatment a top issue and work to combat barriers put in place by insurance companies.
A poll conducted in October by the National Alliance on Mental Health found 61% of Americans feel Congress has not done enough to address mental health needs, and 64% believe the issue should be a high or the highest priority for federal funding. Additionally, 86% believe all elected officials need to put more effort into improving mental health care in the United States.
As politicians overlook mental health care disparities, lack of treatment accessibility remains high: Research from Mental Health America shows in 2023, 42% of adults with any mental illness could not receive the care they needed due to cost barriers.
People want to access therapy and psychiatric services but don’t see it as an option because of steep prices.
Despite the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA), which requires insurance companies to cover behavioral health services, there are still many limitations and barriers to mental health care. Insurance companies find loopholes to decrease the amount of care and access to mental health services: having few in-network providers or intense care qualification standards.
Additionally, because of low insurance reimbursement rates, many therapists and psychiatrists do not take insurance from their patients. They can make nearly double the amount of money if clients pay out-of-pocket. This limits the number of available providers, and it can be even more difficult to find a psychologist who takes Medicare, compared to one who takes private insurance.
Insurance providers also do not reimburse mental health care providers, like social workers or psychiatrists, at the same rate they do other health-care providers. Insurance companies’ inadequacy contributes to the lack of accessibility people are facing in the post-pandemic world. Federal government needs to hold insurance companies accountable by passing legislation that prohibits their inconsistencies.
Research shows lack of access is the root cause of the “mental health crisis” in the U.S., not simply because more people are experiencing these issues, but because few people have access to the health care they want and need.
Recently, there have been some steps in addressing treatment and insurance barriers. President Joe Biden proposed a rule to crack down on insurance companies through the MHPAEA, which includes requiring insurance companies to provide equal access to mental and physical health care. A group of senators also held a mental health caucus in October.
Even so, no legislation has been passed to make mental health care more accessible and affordable. Additionally, if the 2024 president elect does not acknowledge the importance of mental health, then the chance of Biden’s proposed changes may be limited.
Genuine change surrounding insurance and care disparities is needed to minimize the many obstacles to navigating mental health care. Dedication to this issue on behalf of policy makers would increase the possibility of people receiving the healthcare they need.