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Mental Health Providers
Mental Health Providers in United States
United States

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United States Value:

305.0

Number of psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists and advanced practice nurses specializing in mental health care per 100,000 population

Mental Health Providers in depth:

Appears In:

Mental Health Providers by State

Number of psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists and advanced practice nurses specializing in mental health care per 100,000 population




Mental Health Providers Trends

Number of psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists and advanced practice nurses specializing in mental health care per 100,000 population

Trend: Mental Health Providers in United States, 2022 Annual Report

Number of psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists and advanced practice nurses specializing in mental health care per 100,000 population

United States
Source:

 U.S. HHS, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, National Plan and Provider Enumeration System

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Mental Health Providers

Trend: Mental Health Providers in United States, 2022 Annual Report

Number of psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists and advanced practice nurses specializing in mental health care per 100,000 population

United States
Source:

 U.S. HHS, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, National Plan and Provider Enumeration System

About Mental Health Providers

US Value: 305.0

Top State(s): Massachusetts: 722.2

Bottom State(s): Alabama: 128.8

Definition: Number of psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists and advanced practice nurses specializing in mental health care per 100,000 population

Data Source and Years: U.S. HHS, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, National Plan and Provider Enumeration System, September 2022

Suggested Citation: America's Health Rankings analysis of U.S. HHS, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, National Plan and Provider Enumeration System, United Health Foundation, AmericasHealthRankings.org, accessed 2023.

Mental health providers offer essential care to adults and children with mental or behavioral disorders through assessments, diagnoses, treatments, medications and therapeutic interventions. The mental health workforce includes a broad array of professionals, including psychiatrists, psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, counselors, marriage and family therapists, professionals treating alcohol and other drug abuse and advanced practice nurses specializing in mental health care. 

According to the National Institutes of Mental Health, about 1 in 5 Americans experienced a mental illness (not including substance abuse disorders) in 2020. Still only 46.2% of adults with any mental illness and 64.5% of those with a severe mental illness reported receiving treatment in the past year. 

An analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that more than 129 million Americans live in mental health care professional shortage areas and only 28.1% of mental health care needs are being met. The National Council for Mental Wellbeing reported that 77% of counties in the United States are experiencing a severe shortage of mental health providers. Demand for mental health professionals is projected to increase during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

While most of the population (70%) lives close to a mental health treatment facility (less than 10 miles), mental health provider shortages remain common. Populations with limited access to mental health care include:

  • Rural communities.
  • Low-income communities.
  • Communities with a higher percentage of Black or Hispanic individuals.

Strategies to cope with shortages and to increase the number of mental health professionals include:

Healthy People 2030 has multiple objectives related to mental health, including: 

  • Increasing the proportion of adults with depression who get treatment.
  • Increasing the proportion of adults with serious mental illness who get treatment.
  • Increasing the proportion of primary care visits where adolescents and adults are screened for depression.

“2020 Review of Physician and Advanced Practitioner Recruiting Incentives and the Impact of COVID-19.” Dallas, TX: Merritt Hawkins, AMN Healthcare, 2020. https://www.merritthawkins.com/uploadedFiles/Merritt_Hawkins_Incentive_Review_2020.pdf.

Bashshur, Rashid L., Gary W. Shannon, Noura Bashshur, and Peter M. Yellowlees. “The Empirical Evidence for Telemedicine Interventions in Mental Disorders.” Telemedicine and E-Health 22, no. 2 (February 2016): 87–113. https://doi.org/10.1089/tmj.2015.0206.

Butryn, Tracy, Leah Bryant, Christine Marchionni, and Farhad Sholevar. “The Shortage of Psychiatrists and Other Mental Health Providers: Causes, Current State, and Potential Solutions.” International Journal of Academic Medicine 3, no. 1 (2017): 5–9. https://doi.org/10.4103/IJAM.IJAM_49_17.

Cummings, Janet R., Lindsay Allen, Julie Clennon, Xu Ji, and Benjamin G. Druss. “Geographic Access to Specialty Mental Health Care Across High- and Low-Income US Communities.” JAMA Psychiatry 74, no. 5 (May 1, 2017): 476. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2017.0303.

Cummings, Janet R., Hefei Wen, Michelle Ko, and Benjamin G. Druss. “Geography and the Medicaid Mental Health Care Infrastructure: Implications for Health Care Reform.” JAMA Psychiatry 70, no. 10 (October 1, 2013): 1084. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2013.377.

National Council for Mental Wellbeing. “The Psychiatric Shortage: Causes and Solutions.” Medical Director Institute, March 2017. https://www.thenationalcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Revised-Final-Access-Paper.pdf.

Patel, Vikram, Alan J. Flisher, Sarah Hetrick, and Patrick McGorry. “Mental Health of Young People: A Global Public-Health Challenge.” The Lancet 369, no. 9569 (April 14, 2007): 1302–13. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(07)60368-7.

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