Top 5 Barriers to Mental Healthcare Access

The barriers to mental healthcare access are significant issues facing many Americans. More than half of adults with mental illness in the U.S. do not receive mental healthcare treatment, totaling over 27 million adults in the U.S. going untreated. That statistic alone is cause for concern. But mental health issues are far more common than most people realize. According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 1 in 5 American adults have experienced a mental health issue, and 1 in 20 Americans live with a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or major depression.

When mental health issues and illnesses go untreated, it can affect a person’s ability to live a fulfilling life and carry on with school, work or family responsibilities. In addition, it can lead to physical and social problems with serious impacts. 

Ensuring that individuals have access to mental healthcare can improve lives and communities. For many, it can dramatically reduce or eliminate the risk of suicide (which is a leading cause of death in the U.S), legal issues, family conflict, employment issues, substance abuse and further mental and physical health problems. However, to increase the use of mental healthcare services, we first have to understand what prevents people from accessing them in the first place. So let’s examine the top 5 barriers to mental healthcare access.

1. Financial barriers to mental healthcare

While the Affordable Care Act required medical insurers to provide coverage for behavioral and mental healthcare, the cost of treatment still often limits access to mental health services. Even with insurance or financial assistance, mental healthcare services can be costly. Copays and deductibles add up quickly when a diagnosis requires regular therapy, complicated medication management or intensive treatment programs.

For many individuals, a lack of financial resources prevents them from seeking help at all. For others, a lack of financial resources can lead to inconsistent or inadequate treatment. For instance, a traditional 60-minute therapy session can range from $65 to $250 for those with or without insurance. And a more severe diagnosis, of course, carries heavier lifetime cost burdens. A patient with major depression can spend an average of $10,836 a year on health costs. 

2. Lack of mental health professionals

While the U.S. is facing an overall shortage of doctors, the shortage of mental health professionals is steeper than any other category. According to the Health Resources and Services Administration, 149 million Americans live in federally-designated Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas (HPSA). In contrast, 93 million Americans live in similarly-designated primary-care shortage areas, and 67 million live in dental health shortage areas. 

Other factors compound this overall shortage of healthcare providers. Rural areas often have few to no mental healthcare providers at all, let alone providers with specialties. Urban clinics and providers often have long waiting lists, and patients can suffer for months before they get a basic intake appointment. In contrast, virtual therapy today is much more common and accessible to many. Yet, this option requires a reliable internet connection and can limit care if a person isn’t in a safe, trusted environment.

These factors can make it difficult for someone to find affordable and accessible mental healthcare to get reliable and consistent treatment.

3. Mental health education and awareness

Physical injuries and illnesses are typically apparent. They don’t feel well, something hurts or a clinical test shows an abnormality. Mental illnesses, however, are often harder to recognize. Symptoms are often subtle and sometimes even dismissed as “personality” or “attitude” issues. For example, clinical anxiety may be dismissed as “worrying too much,” or depression can often look like “laziness” or “fatigue.”

Serious conditions may not even be obvious to the person suffering or those around them if they don’t share their inner thoughts and feelings. Other times, people assume that their emotional or mental status is normal, not realizing that they are suffering from disordered thinking or clinical symptoms. And if a person doesn’t know something is wrong, it’s unlikely they will seek treatment.

4. The social stigma of mental health conditions

Multiple studies have found that the stigmas associated with mental illness often prevent people from accessing treatment. On the one hand, a person’s own beliefs about mental illness can prevent them from acknowledging their illness or sticking with treatment.

On the other hand, the risk of facing discrimination in cultural, social and professional circles creates a huge barrier. People may fear that family and friends will avoid them or treat them differently. They may also be concerned that disclosing a mental health condition can lead to adverse treatment and perceptions at work.

5. Racial barriers to mental healthcare access

There are significant disparities in mental healthcare access among different racial and ethnic groups. One survey finds that white adults (23%) are more likely than black (13.6%) and Hispanic (12.9%) adults to receive any mental health treatment. These disparities stem from everything covered above and a lack of diverse representation in the mental health field, language barriers and implicit bias. 

According to research from American Psychological Association (APA), 84% of U.S. psychologists are white, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics found that close to 70% of U.S. social workers and 88% of mental health counselors are white. People are less likely to seek help if they think their doctor can’t understand or empathize with their background or cultural differences and experiences.

The good news is that APA is also seeing more people of color earning psychology degrees, a trend that is en­hancing the diversity of the psychology workforce.

Making mental healthcare more accessible 

While these barriers and stats can seem disheartening, it’s essential to take the time to understand how these issues apply to the communities and individuals you serve. Understanding what prevents mental healthcare access opens the door to improving access with better programs and policies. 

If your organization is ready to amplify your mental health programs, empower your mission and improve outcomes, check out how Apricot case management software can assist your health and human services organizations today.