Behavioral Health - California Health Care Foundation

Behavioral Health
The burden of untreated behavioral health conditions — encompassing mental health and substance use disorders — is both a major public health problem and a delivery system challenge. CHCF works to improve systems of behavioral health care and to focus on integrating mental health, substance use, and physical health services to achieve the best outcomes for Californians with low incomes.

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Mental Health in California

Adriana Ramos-Yamamoto, Scott Graves

Behavioral Health, Medi-Cal

This chartbook from the California Budget & Policy Center provides a detailed look at California's public mental health system, which serves more than a million California children, youth, and adults annually.

Paying for Value in Behavioral Health

Robert Belfort, Adam Striar

Behavioral Health, Medi-Cal

State Medicaid programs are actively pursuing models of behavioral health value-based purchasing. This paper reviews well-publicized initiatives in three state Medicaid programs that have adopted different types of behavioral health value-based purchasing models.

Mental Health Tops Californians’ Health Care Priorities in Statewide Poll

Eran Ben-Porath, Emily Hachey, Jazmyne Sutton, Jennifer Su

Behavioral Health, Health Care Costs, Insurance Coverage, Medi-Cal, Workforce

The survey offers detailed insight into Californians’ views on a range of critical health issues, including health care affordability and access, perceptions on homelessness, the health care workforce, Medi-Cal, and the experiences of the uninsured.

CalAIM Behavioral Health Proposals

Behavioral Health, Medi-Cal

CalAIM: California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal is a multiyear initiative proposing broad delivery system, program, and payment reform across the Medi-Cal program. Read a summary of the proposals pertaining to behavioral health care.

February 18, 2020

Briefing: Behavioral Health Integration in Medi-Cal

Behavioral Health

February 18, 2020

Join this CHCF briefing to learn about efforts to integrate physical and behavioral health care in Medicaid programs across the country and within Medi-Cal in California.

Making Behavioral Health Integration Work

Logan Kelly, Allison Hamblin

Behavioral Health

This paper synthesizes insights from organizational leaders representing Medicaid-based partnerships in four states: Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, and Oregon.

Medi-Cal Waivers and State Plan Amendments

Two short documents provide an overview of Medicaid waivers and State Plan Amendments, and how they are used in California. A one-page comparison chart shows the differences between these two policy instruments.

Concert Health Aims to Scale Collaborative Mental Health Care

January 30, 2020

Behavioral Health, Investing in Innovation, Telehealth, Workforce

Patients served by small and rural primary care physicians may benefit from a remote version of this increasingly popular model for providing mental health care.

Can Behavioral Health Entrepreneurs Finally Break Through?

September 20, 2019

Investing in Innovation, Behavioral Health

In 2018, health tech start-ups raised nearly $400 million in funding for technology investments related to behavioral health. In what areas are innovators making genuine progress?

Behavioral Health Integration in Medi-Cal: A Blueprint for California

Logan Kelly, Allison Hamblin, Stephen Kaplan

Behavioral Health

People in Medi-Cal with complex behavioral and physical health needs face a fragmented system that is challenging to navigate. This paper offers recommendations to build an integrated system of care in Medi-Cal, bringing together physical health, mental health, and substance use services to treat the whole person.

Voluntary Behavioral Health Integration in Medi-Cal: What Can Be Achieved Under Current Law

Anil Shankar, Diane Ung

Behavioral Health, Medi-Cal

This paper was prepared by two attorneys with extensive experience in structuring Medicaid financing for safety-net providers. It explores different contracting structures through which a county could lead efforts to create opportunities for integration of physical and behavioral health care.

Integrated Physical and Behavioral Health in Medicaid Managed Care

Logan Kelly, Michelle Conway, Michelle Herman Soper

Behavioral Health

This brief distills insights from providers in three states — Arizona, New York, and Washington — that have recently transitioned to integrated managed care for physical and behavioral health conditions. It was written by the Center for Health Care Strategies with support from the Blue Shield of California Foundation and CHCF.

Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Parity Under the ACA

Caroline Au Yeung, Colin Planalp

Behavioral Health

The ACA mandated mental health and addiction coverage parity to beneficiaries in the individual and small-group markets and to Medicaid expansion beneficiaries. This brief, prepared by SHADAC with CHCF support, details how the ACA applied these mandates and presents estimates of the number of people affected.

Whole Person Care Pilot Program: A Mid-Point Check-In

Lucy Pagel, Carol Backstrom, Hilary Haycock

Behavioral Health

Across California, 25 pilot programs are working to closely coordinate physical and behavioral health care with social services to help Medi-Cal enrollees with high-cost, complex needs. This paper provides an update on their progress and outlines remaining challenges.

September 23, 2019

Briefing — An Introduction to California’s Public Mental Health System

Behavioral Health

September 23, 2019

At this CHCF briefing participants learned the fundamentals of the history and financing of the mental health system for people insured through Medi-Cal.

Catalyzing Coordination: Technology’s Role in California’s Whole Person Care Pilots

Keira Armstrong, Mark Elson, John Weir

Investing in Innovation, Data Exchange, Behavioral Health

Across California, 25 pilot programs are working to closely coordinate physical and behavioral health care with social services to help Medi-Cal enrollees with high-cost, complex needs. This paper delves into the technological successes, barriers, and opportunities encountered by the pilot programs thus far.

In LA, Exciting Era Dawns for Addiction Treatment

December 11, 2018

Medi-Cal, Behavioral Health, Opioid Safety

A groundbreaking Medi-Cal program is enabling substance use disorder treatment facilities to say yes to more patients seeking care, yes to more flexibility regarding treatment plans, and yes to hiring more workers to treat people in need.

2018 Edition — Substance Use in California

Behavioral Health

About 8% of Californians met criteria for substance use disorder, but only 10% of people with a substance use disorder received any type of treatment. CHCF's first Almanac publication to address this topic provides an overview of substance use and addiction in the state.

Transforming Mental Health Patients into Providers

January 13, 2019

Behavioral Health, Workforce

An innovative program in Washington connects peer support counselors whose personal experience of recovery from mental illness or addiction helps them deliver behavioral health services to patients — at pivotal moments in their lives.

Medi-Cal Moves Addiction Treatment into the Mainstream

Molly Brassil, Carol Backstrom, Erynne Jones

Behavioral Health, Medi-Cal, Opioid Safety

A fundamental shift is underway in California to expand, improve, and reorganize Medi-Cal’s system for treating people with substance use disorders. This report summarizes the experiences of the first counties to implement this new approach.

California’s Current and Future Behavioral Health Workforce

Janet Coffman, Timothy Bates, Igor Geyn, Joanne Spetz

Behavioral Health, Opioid Safety, Workforce

This report synthesizes data about California’s behavioral health workforce. California needs to make substantial investments to meet future demand for behavioral health professionals.

Drug Medi-Cal Organized Delivery System

Behavioral Health, Medi-Cal, Opioid Safety

In Medi-Cal, treatment for patients with substance use disorder has long been run out of a separate program. Now California is implementing a broad move to modernize this system of care.

2018 Edition — Mental Health in California

Behavioral Health, Providers

Mental Health in California: For Too Many, Care Not There provides an overview of mental health in California: disease prevalence, suicide rates, supply and use of treatment providers, and mental health in the correctional system. This Almanac report also includes available data on spending and quality of care.

Overcoming Data-Sharing Challenges in the Opioid Epidemic

Robert Belfort, Alex Dworkowitz

Behavioral Health, Opioid Safety

Federal confidentiality rules, such as the "Part 2" rules, can be a stumbling block for primary care practices seeking to integrate substance use disorder treatment. This paper summarizes the rules and outlines steps that practices can take to coordinate care and stay within the law.

From Corrections to Community: Reentry Health Care

Behavioral Health, Medi-Cal

People in jail or prison experience high rates of physical and mental health problems within complex social contexts. CHCF is working with partners to improve the coordination and delivery of care for those leaving correctional settings and returning to the community.

Fine Print: Rules for Exchanging Behavioral Health Information in California

Deven McGraw, Robert Belfort, Alex Dworkowitz

Behavioral Health, Data Exchange

The exchange of behavioral health information is constrained by operational challenges and legal concerns. Manatt Health describes the regulatory framework for sharing such data in California.

CIN Partners Share: Behavioral and Physical Health Care, Better Together

Behavioral Health, Patient-Centered Care

For the California Improvement Network's November 2015 meeting, partners discussed how physical and behavioral health are better together.