142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition

Home Events & Meetings Annual Meeting Schedule & Program

Online Program

Annual Meeting Recordings are now available for purchase

305061
National trends in mental health service utilization and cost barriers to care among adults with mental illness in the United States: 2003-2012

142nd APHA Annual Meeting and Exposition (November 15 - November 19, 2014): http://www.apha.org/events-and-meetings/annual
Wednesday, November 19, 2014

Christopher R. Larrison, PhD , School of Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL
Xiaoling Xiang, M.Phil , School of Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL
Karen Tabb, PhD, MSW , School of Social Work, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, IL
Background: Unmet need for mental health treatment remains a significant public health problem. While recent policy initiatives offer hope for better access to treatment, budget cuts to community mental health services during the recession and declining availability of hospital beds provide a less optimistic picture. This study seeks to examine trends in accessing mental health treatment and cost barriers to treatment for people experiencing mental health needs between 2003 and 2012.

Methods: Using the National Health Interview Survey of 2003-2012 we examined a sample of adults (n=9913) with mental illness (operationalized as Kessler 6 score ≥13). Logistic regression was used to examine the association of survey year with nonuse of mental health services or prescription medications due to cost in the past 12 months, and contacts with mental health professional.

Results: The percent of nonuse of mental health services due to cost increased from 20.1% in 2003 to 25.6% in 2012 (OR=1.04, p<.001), and the percent of nonuse of prescription medications increased from 34.9% to 38.0% (OR=1.02, p<.05). The percent of any contact with mental health professionals increased from 32.0% to 39.7% (OR=1.03, p<.01) over the study period. There were significant disparities in cost barriers and contact by age, gender, race/ethnicity, household income, and insurance coverage.

Conclusions: More adults with mental illness are accessing treatment. However, for this group cost barriers to services and medication also grew. These trends remain present post implementation of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act and Affordable Care Act in 2010.

Learning Areas:

Advocacy for health and health education
Other professions or practice related to public health
Program planning

Learning Objectives:
Identify the trends in contacts with mental health professional by adults with mental health needs. Compare how differences in age, gender, race/ethnicity, household income, and insurance coverage impact cost barriers to mental health treatment for adults with mental health needs. Explore ways to improve access to mental health treatment, and reduce cost barriers to services and medication.

Keyword(s): Accessibility, Mental Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Xiaoling Xiang is a PhD candidate at school of social work, University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign. She's interested in health services research and health promotion. She is particularly interested in the relationship between mental health and physical health.She thrives to raise awareness of complex health problems in people with mental illness and to improve health care and health outcomes for people with comorbid mental illness and chronic physical conditions.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

Back to: 5015.0: Research Perspectives on Mental Health and Mental Illness: POSTER 8