Sharing – Coronavirus reveals everything that’s wrong with our mental health care system
The article below points out what some of us already knew even before this pandemic situation. Yes, there are lots of services out there doing what they can to provide tips for dealing with anxiety, and how to support one another, and the numbers you can call in a crisis.
But, there’s desperate shortage of mental health care. There has been a desperate shortage even before this started.
The author calls for some immediate changes, loosening restrictions for telephone or online therapy coverage for Medicaid covered individuals, and encouraging insurance companies to do the same, waiving the need to been seen in person before getting some prescriptions, and allowing the practice of mental health care across state lines.
These would, clearly, help right now.
We should also, once this is over, recognize that the lack of mental healthcare will still exist, and be looking at which of these changes we can make permanent.
The shortage won’t go anywhere.
