Opinion: Integrated care opens new doors to mental health, addiction care

In every American community — wealthy or poor, rural or urban, young or old — at least 1 in 5 people live with mental health disorders. And yet no American community has an adequate supply of mental health clinicians who can provide timely, affordable, high-quality care for the people who need it.

Untreated mental illness has a profound toll: poor health outcomes, missed work, high costs of care, and premature death. Only half of individuals referred for treatment are actually seen by a mental health care provider and, when they are, the average number of visits is just two. Only half of psychiatrists accept insurance, and less than half of U.S. counties have any psychiatrists at all.

Read the rest…

Read Original Article: Opinion: Integrated care opens new doors to mental health, addiction care »