Issue Briefs | Jul 20, 2023

Medicaid Managed Care Strategies to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities in Mental Healthcare for Adults

Medicaid programs are uniquely positioned to promote greater equity in mental healthcare, as the program plays an outsized role in the financing and delivery of mental healthcare. This issue brief identifies ways in which states can leverage their Medicaid managed care (MMC) programs to advance their health equity goals. The four approaches outlined in the issue brief describe requirements or incentives for MMC entities to 1) direct quality improvement strategies to identify mental health disparities and successfully intervene to promote equity; 2) facilitate access to clinical and non-clinical mental healthcare services; 3) integrate mental health in primary care settings; and 4) address the lack of a racially and ethnically diverse mental health workforce. The brief also provides state examples to further illustrate how each approach has been implemented.