Demand for mental health treatment has significantly increased in recent years, making access to behavioral health services more critical than ever.
About 46% of U.S. adults — or 27 million individuals — with any mental health issue did not receive treatment in 2023, according to the latest data from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the current strain on available mental health services may only be the beginning. That is why Doug Nemecek, MD, chief medical officer of behavioral health at Evernorth, Cigna's health services business, is focused on making mental health treatment as accessible as possible.
"The No. 1 concern we hear from employers and individuals is the struggle with accessing care," Dr. Nemecek told Becker's. "From that standpoint, access has become more of an issue, and we have been very focused on helping people with that access. We have continued to grow our network of mental health and substance use providers nationally and have doubled the size of our network over the last four years."
Among adults with any mental health issue who did not receive treatment in the last year, about 24% reported they felt there was an unmet need for mental health services, according to SAMHSA. The most common reason respondents cited for not pursuing mental health treatment was feeling that "they should have been able to handle their mental health, emotions, or behavior on their own (70.5%).
Despite an increase in the number of individuals being diagnosed with mental health conditions, the stigma surrounding mental health treatment persists, which is why the increase in popularity in virtual care services during COVID-19 may have contributed to the jump in mental health resource utilization in recent years.
"During the pandemic, over 60% of people received their mental health and substance use services virtually, and it has stayed high. We continue to grow our network to ensure we have more providers available [and contract] digital health solutions for various health conditions, including children, adults, eating disorders, and substance use disorders," Dr. Nemecek said.
"Patients like the convenience of virtual and digital providers, as it reduces privacy concerns and removes stigma."
Dr. Nemecek and Evernorth plan to keep removing barriers to accessing mental health treatment by prioritizing the addition of care delivery options, locations and services.