Leading Stories, Articles
Survey: Access to mental health, substance use disorder care is a challenge for Massachusetts adults
By Susan Gonsalves
Data from the 2018 Massachusetts Health Reform Survey showed that 56.8 percent of adults ages 19 to 64 who sought help for mental health or substance abuse disorders experienced difficulties obtaining care. The problems included finding a provider who would see them at all or getting an appointment in a timely manner when it was needed. As a result, more than one-third of those adults went without help and 12.7 percent visited an emergency department to address those issues. The Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation and Urban Institute collected the information using data from a random telephone survey involving 2,201 [More]
Tags: psychologists, Mental health, Massachusetts, behavioral health, survey, substance abuse, healthcare
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Market conduct review leads to new fund to supplement behavioral health care system in RI
By Janine Weisman
Blue Cross Blue Shield Rhode Island stopped requiring prior approval for in-network mental health or substance use disorder services on Aug. 1, a move the state’s largest health insurer said was part of a larger focus on improving access to care. Out-of-network services will still be subject to what’s known as utilization review for behavioral health services. But left out of the BCBSRI news release when this policy change was initially announced last May was the fact that the discontinuation of the process known as utilization review came about during discussions with state regulators. That’s after examiners from the Rhode [More]
Tags: prescription drugs, behavioral health, Blue Cross Blue Shield Rhode Island, BCBSRI, prior authorization, state regulators, substance use disorder services, Out-of-network services, deficiencies, reviews of coverage
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Mass. increases beds, facilities while other states remain stable
By Phyllis Hanlon
The psychiatric care landscape has shifted in recent years from an inpatient setting to community placement and back to in-hospital treatment. New England Psychologist surveyed the New England states to assess the current inpatient situation. Kathleen Remillard, public information officer (PIO) at New Hampshire’s Department of Health and Human Services, reported that the state has had no psychiatric unit closures in the past year. Rather, New Hampshire has gained 20 new transitional housing beds for patients recently released from New Hampshire Hospital or other designated receiving facilities. Vermont has also added 20 youth psychiatric beds; and four mobile crisis apartments [More]
Tags: New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, psychiatric care, increase in beds, increase in facilities, opioid crisis, behavioral health, Connecticut, psychiatric unit
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