The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant impacts to behavioral health access and services in the U.S.
Key points in the American Hospital Association’s (AHA) report include:
- In-person, outpatient professional behavioral health visits have declined heavily throughout the pandemic, falling by as much as 75% for consumers with commercial insurance, 56% for Medicare beneficiaries and 25% for Medicaid beneficiaries.
- Overall, utilization of behavioral health disorder services for all ages from birth to 64 dropped substantially in April 2020 and continued to decline through October 2020 in nearly all states.
- Preliminary evidence from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) suggests a sharp increase in the number of adults reporting adverse behavioral health conditions during the pandemic, compared to prior years.
- The pandemic exacerbated preexisting strains in the nation’s behavioral health services, especially among communities facing sustained hardship, including, young people, the LGBTQ+ population and historically underrepresented populations.
- Health professional shortages have long impeded behavioral health care access, and are largely attributable to low reimbursement/provider payment, as well as the recent and imminent retirement of more than half of the current workforce.
- As restrictions on telehealth loosened, including HIPAA requirements for video-conferencing software and geographic requirements, providers conducted 75% of behavioral health visits via telehealth in May and June 2020 for patients with commercial insurance.
- Lower overall adoption rates of telehealth for Medicaid beneficiaries highlight potential challenges with access to technology, computers or tablets.
View the full report on the AHA website.