Benchmarking Behavioral Health INtegration in Community Health Centers (BeNCH)
Improving access, equity, and outcomes for Medicaid enrollees
Background
Each year, over 50 million adults in the U.S. experience mental health conditions, yet FEWER THAN HALF receive the care they need. Medicaid, the largest payer of mental health services, faces challenges in providing adequate access to behavioral health care due to limited provider participation and fragmented systems. One promising solution is Behavioral Health Integration in primary care, where medical and behavioral health providers collaborate to deliver comprehensive care. This approach is gaining traction, particularly within community health centers, which serve 1 in 5 Medicaid enrollees.
BeNCH Goals
This 5-year NIMH-funded study seeks to understand how well behavioral health integration is implemented in community health centers and how it affects access to care, health outcomes and equity for Medicaid patients. By analyzing data from a national sample of community health centers linked to Medicaid claims, and other sources, we aim to:
- Assess the national landscape of integrated behavioral health in community health centers, identifying factors that drive successful integration across states.
- Evaluate the impact of IBH on improving access to mental health services and patient outcomes, including hospital use, medication adherence, and healthcare costs.
- Create a new research tool to track IBH levels in CHCs using Medicaid claims data, aiding future policy and funding decisions.
Results from this study will inform policies to strengthen behavioral health services and ensure that community health centers can provide access to essential care for vulnerable populations.