Behavioral Health

Image of an older adult looking out of a window with clip art of a brain overlayed on the lower right side of the image.

Behavioral health is an umbrella term that includes mental health and substance abuse conditions, life stressors and crises, stress-related physical symptoms, and health behaviors. Behavioral health conditions often affect medical illnesses.1 Individuals who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid are more likely than other Medicare beneficiaries to have a mental health diagnosis, with many dually eligible beneficiaries having multiple complex and chronic conditions.2 Approximately 41% of dually eligible adults aged 18 to 64 report experiencing symptoms of a behavioral health condition in the past year, compared to only 16% of adults aged 18 to 64 who are eligible for Medicare only.3 Resources for Integrated Care features practical resources for providers and plans delivering services to dually eligible beneficiaries with behavioral health conditions to help address these disparities. Products and webinars highlight promising practices, lessons learned, and stories from the field to support the delivery of integrated and coordinated care tailored to the needs of this population. Developed with input from a wide range of providers, plans, and other subject matter experts, these resources focus on the following topics:

  • Behavioral Health & IDD

  • Behavioral Health & Older Adults

  • Integration with Primary Care

  • Navigation Services

  • Peer Supports

  • Self-Management

  • Substance Use

1 The Academy Integrating Behavioral Health and Primary Care, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2020). What is Integrated Behavioral Health?  Retrieved from https://integrationacademy.ahrq.gov/about/integrated-behavioral-health.

2 Medicare-Medicaid Coordination Office. (2020). [Fact Sheet] People Enrolled in Medicare and Medicaid. Retrieved from https://www.cms.gov/Medicare-Medicaid-Coordination/Medicare-and-Medicaid-Coordination/Medicare-Medicaid-Coordination-Office/Downloads/MMCO_Factsheet.pdf.

3 Medicare-Medicaid Coordination Office. (2012). [Fact Sheet] Medicare-Medicaid Enrollee Information National 2012. Retrieved from: https://www.cms.gov/Medicare-Medicaid-Coordination/Medicare-and-Medicaid-Coordination/Medicare-Medicaid-Coordination-Office/Downloads/NationalProfile_2012.pdf.

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