More of this, because the initial response is common, so we are going to need lots of alternative resources if we are going to make even the slightest dent in mental health care needs:<\/p>\n
“NOGUCHI: The stress got to Miller, who has raised five kids on her own. And the isolation, she says, stirred up decades-old childhood trauma. She reached out to a therapist’s office. A month later, they called back to say the next appointment would take another month.<\/p>\n
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MILLER: And I said, you need to change your practice because for somebody reaching out, they could be suicidal. This could be a breaking point. And you’re telling somebody that’s depressed, severely depressed, to wait another four weeks?<\/p>\n
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NOGUCHI: Then she noticed her local CVS advertising mental health services. She called and reached a counselor right away.<\/p>\n
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MILLER: I got, you can come in today. I said, today? And she said, yeah.<\/p>\n
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NOGUCHI: That gap is part of why CVS launched this pilot. It plans to expand into 34 stores this year, targeting diverse communities like this bustling area just north of Philadelphia. Rachel Garfield, co-directs the Kaiser Family Foundation program on Medicaid. She says therapy remains too expensive for many people, but insurers recognize there’s huge unmet patient need.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
There is a huge unmet need, and I hope this pilot works out, and gets expanded to places where it’s most needed. And then, I hope other innovative ideas become reality as well.<\/p>\n
We need them all.<\/p>\n