Why is Mental Health Care So Expensive?

Calculating health care costs can be complicated. Insured individuals pay “premiums”, or set payments you pay to maintain health insurance – similar to a subscription. While your insurance will cover a portion of your health care costs, you will also often have to pay a portion. These “out-of-pocket costs” include deductibles, copayments (“copays”), and co-insurance.

Head Spinning Already? Fair.

The deductible is a set amount that must be paid before your insurance kicks in to pick up the costs of care. However, many common services like a doctor’s visits only require a copay. This is a set amount you pay at the time of receiving care. Copays for seeing a primary care provider are usually lower than seeing a specialist. Primary care providers can conduct mental health screenings for things like depression or substance abuse. However, some mental health providers, such as psychologists, are considered specialists. This means they require a more expensive specialist copay per visit.

What Else is Expensive? Meds!

The cost of prescription medication can also vary widely depending on the type of health insurance you have. It can depend on the type of medication prescribed to you (for example, brand name versus generic).

In Short, Mental Health Can Be More Expensive Than Physical Health

It can be very hard to predict what you’ll be expected to pay. In fact, many mental health professionals do not accept insurance at all, and it can be challenging to find a provider in the insurer’s covered network. While some plans allow individuals to submit for reimbursement after paying for care, this requires a significant amount of upfront payment and additional paperwork and is less likely to be available in lower cost plans that restrict choices to a smaller network of providers.