Comparing Older Adults’ Mental Health Needs and Access to Treatment in the U.S. and Other High-Income Countries

Commonwealth Fund January 21, 2022
Munira Z. Gunja, Arnav Shah, Reginald D. Williams II

Toplines

U.S. Medicare beneficiaries are far likelier to report receiving a mental health diagnosis — and to have cost problems getting needed care — than older adults in 10 other high-income countries

Mental health disparities among older U.S. adults are glaring: nearly a third of Hispanic/Latinx Medicare beneficiaries reported a mental health diagnosis, versus 21 percent of white and 12 percent of Black beneficiaries

Abstract

• Issue: Nearly all U.S. adults over 65 have some mental health coverage through Medicare. Whether that coverage is sufficient is in question. Comparing mental health care access and affordability for U.S. Medicare beneficiaries with that for older adults in peer nations could highlight coverage gaps and point to opportunities for improvement.
• Goals: To compare...

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