Background
Medicaid is the primary payer for behavioral health services; however, we know little about the variation in use of behavioral health services and telebehavioral health services prior to and during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially in rural and mental health professional shortage areas. As federal and state policymakers push for further Medicaid expansion in the 12 non-expansion states, it is important for workforce planning to understand patterns and variation in behavioral health service delivery in a mature Medicaid expansion state subject to COVID-19 impacts. Michigan’s Medicaid program, Healthy Michigan Plan, is one such example that can be used to explore the impacts of the COVID-19 on behavioral health care.
Research Questions
This study aims to provide an overview of the patterns of behavioral health service use by Michigan Medicaid enrollees before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Did Michigan Medicaid enrollees experience an increase in mental health and substance use disorder diagnoses during the COVID-19 pandemic?
- Was there an increase in mental health and substance use disorder service use among Michigan Medicaid enrollees during the COVID-19 pandemic?
- Did telebehavioral health use among Michigan Medicaid enrollees increase during the COVID-19 pandemic?
Findings
Coming summer 2022.
