Beyond Parity: Primary Care Physicians' Perspectives On Access To Mental Health Care: More PCPs have trouble obtaining mental health services for their patients than have problems getting other specialty services.
Abstract
About two-thirds of primary care physicians (PCPs) reported in 2004-05 that they could not get outpatient mental health services for patients-a rate that was at least twice as high as that for other services. Shortages of mental health care providers, health plan barriers, and lack of coverage or inadequate coverage were all cited by PCPs as important barriers to mental health care access. The probability of having mental health access problems for patients varied by physician practice, health system, and policy factors. The results suggest that implementing mental health parity nationally will reduce some but not all of the barriers to mental health care.
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- Authors
- Cunningham, P. J.
- Affiliations
- Center for Studying Health System Change (US)
- Corresponding author
- Cunningham, Peter J.
- Venue
- Health Affairs
- Publisher
- Health Affairs Publishing, LLC
- Published
- 2009-01
- Volume
- 28
- Issue
- Supplement 1
- Pages
- w490-w501
- ISSN
- 0278-2715 (ISSN-L)
- 1544-5208
- OpenAlex
- W2010464927
- Cited by
- 420
- References
- 19
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 17 · 2024: 16 · 2023: 15 · 2022: 48 · 2021: 34 · 2020: 36 · 2019: 40 · 2018: 22 · 2017: 28 · 2016: 25 · 2015: 32 · 2014: 21 · 2013: 24 · 2012: 21
- FWCI
- 22.11
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Health Affairs (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Mental Health Treatment and Access
- Social Sciences › Economics, Econometrics and Finance › Economics and Econometrics › Healthcare Policy and Management
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychiatric care and mental health services
- Keywords
- mental health parity, access to mental health care, primary care physicians, barriers to mental health care, mental health workforce shortage, mental health coverage, physician attitudes, health policy
- MeSH terms
- Attitude of Health Personnel, Health Policy, Health Services Accessibility, Humans, Insurance, Psychiatric, Medicaid, Mental Health Services, Primary Health Care, Referral and Consultation, United States, Medically Uninsured, Insurance Coverage, Health Care Surveys, Healthcare Disparities
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