Medicaid: HHS’s Preliminary Analyses Offer Incomplete Picture of Behavioral Health Demonstration’s Effectiveness

Untreated mental health issues or substance use disorders can have ripple effects. In 2014, Congress approved a 2-year program to improve mental health services in up to 8 states, particularly for Medicaid beneficiaries. The program was extended to Sept. 2023.

HHS will continue to have trouble determining how well the program works due to problems with program data.

For example, most clinics hadn’t reported quality measures before, so there is no baseline data available for measuring progress.

As another example, HHS didn’t tell states which services to provide under the program—a design decision that makes uniform assessments more difficult.

What GAO Found

The Protecting Access to Medicare Act of 2014 (PAMA)...