Industry insiders have pushed back on the U.S. Senate Finance Committee’s highly charged report on the at-risk youth industry, claiming it failed to address the key drivers of abuse in the industry and chart a clear path forward after creating a public spectacle. Despite the lack of a clear path forward, the report and comments […]
National Association for Behavioral Healthcare
Dating slang is helping behavioral health professionals describe a troubling evolution in payer relations. Payer ghosting. In dating, someone “ghosts” another person when they abruptly stop communicating despite previous interest. In this context, payer ghosting occurs when payers stonewall providers on claim reimbursement. This can be a trickier challenge for providers than the typical payer […]
Parity will likely be the defining regulatory issue of 2024 as the behavioral health industry braces for the impact of the Biden administration’s to-be-finalized rule. Still, there is plenty to sort out with just 44 days left in 2023. This includes other pending regulatory issues that could be addressed before the end of the year. […]
The public comment period hasn’t begun for the Biden administration’s recently published proposed mental health parity rule. But that hasn’t stopped a flood of commentary on the rule from entering the public sphere already. On July 25, the administration released a proposed rule that firms up mental health parity in terms of health plan’s compliance […]
The $1.66 trillion omnibus funding bill touches nearly every aspect of the behavioral health industry. Advocates in the space weren’t shy about praising the bill even though it didn’t include some long-sought reforms. A quick tally of funding for the most germane items finds that the federal government is putting at least $10 billion into […]
Inpatient psychiatric and other behavioral health facilities could be easier to finance should a newly requested congressional probe and new legislation become reality. A group of lawmakers on the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services has asked the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO), a congressional research agency, to study the impact of allowing facilities that […]
The nation’s behavioral health industry keeps growing, with current estimates pegging it to be worth $90 billion. And for those on the frontline advocating for the industry, it is an especially busy time. Like everyone else, the ongoing – and seemingly neverending – pandemic remains front-and-center in the consciousness of behavioral health leaders, as they […]
In the behavioral health world, Sheppard Pratt has long been a stalwart. Founded in 1853, Towson, Maryland-based Sheppard Pratt is the nation’s largest nonprofit provider of mental health, substance use disorder (SUD), developmental disability, special education and social services. Ranked as one of the top hospitals for psychiatry by US News & World Report, Sheppard […]
After much haggling among Democrats in Congress, President Biden Thursday unveiled the latest framework of his reconciliation spending bill. The new version of the Build Back Better Act is a $1.75 trillion bill that, pricewise, is a scaled down version of the spending agenda Biden has sought to enact as a capstone achievement of his […]
To say Shawn Coughlin has a lot on his mind these days is putting it mildly. Throughout the pandemic, behavioral health conditions nationwide have worsened and substance use disorder (SUD) overdose rates have continually broken records. Although the numbers paint a bleak picture, Coughlin — who heads one of the behavioral health industry’s leading groups […]