Mental Health Crisis PT 2:

I have written about how the Rosie D. vs Romney settlement calls for increased mental health services for children in Massachusetts. While the first phase calls for primary care doctors to prescreen children for mental health services in their offices, there are still other barriers that exist as well.

We are aware of the shortage of qualified mental health clinicians to provide the above services due to low reimbursements and not being paid for no-shows in mental health clinics (non-profit) in Massachusetts. There is another barrier that I need to make everyone aware of.

I have spoken to mental health professionals who are having difficulty getting on commercial insurance panels. There is discrimination by a few who are refusing to open their panels because of the false perception and assumption that the market is saturated. This is not true at all. The irony of this belief is that children are not getting the mental health services they need from private practitioners due to long waiting lists. In fact, several mental health clinics in Central Massachusetts have stopped taking one comercial health insurance company due to the shortage of qualified licensed mental health professionals.

As a result, many children are not getting the mental health services they need. It is estimated that over 100,000 children in Massachusetts need these services according to Health Care For All website, www.hcfa.org.


What can parents and mental health professionals due to stop this injustice for our clients?

Here are few pointers:

1) Talke to your legislators to create new laws to make insurance companies open up their panels for mental health services for children when there is an unmet need.
2) Write letters to the editor in your local newspapers.
3) Contact the associations that represent social workers and mental health counselors in your state and ask them to lobby for changes that will benefit the clients.
4) Request meetings with these insurance companies to create an open dialogue of voicing your concerns.

Robbin Miller, LMHC
www.rmillerchat.com
Moderator