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Although Oregon’s abysmal response to mental illness has been well documented, the crisis is national. A new report from ProPublica lays bare one of the culprits here and across the country—health insurers who deny reimbursement.
Related: The State’s Leading Psychiatrist Says Oregon’s Approach to Mental Health Is Wrong
As one of its primary examples, ProPublica cites the experience of Dr. Melissa Todd, a Eugene psychologist who was treating a young woman with a bipolar diagnosis.
Despite having insurance coverage from United Healthcare, the patient could not find a psychiatrist to prescribe the medication Todd believed she needed. The woman paid for the psychiatrist out of pocket, but Todd struggled to get United Healthcare to reimburse her for the therapy she provided.
“Todd left the network so she could treat her patient without interference,” ProPublica reports. “The patient could afford to pay out-of-pocket because of a small settlement after her father’s sudden death.” (United Healthcare didn’t comment on Todd’s concerns but told ProPublica it is “committed to ensuring members have access to care that is consistent with the terms of their health plans.”)
Todd is just one of dozens of providers ProPublica interviewed with similar stories.
The severity of the crisis can be seen in one statistic the story cites: “People are more than twice as likely to pay their full bill out of pocket for visits to mental health providers than primary care physicians.”