Washington state ranks in the bottom half nationally when it comes to the prevalence of mental illnesses and the state of its mental health system, according to a new report released Thursday by the nonprofit agency Mental Health America.
Ranked 32nd for a second year, Washington state did fare better than its Pacific Northwest neighbors. Idaho ranked 47th and Oregon ranked 50th, just above Kansas in last place (the report also includes Washington, D.C.).
The Mental Health America report scores states by a variety of mental health-related measures, including the overall ranking that looks at access to care, the size of each state’s mental health workforce, the number of adults and youth with mental illness or a substance use disorder, and costs or insurance issues that limit people from getting care in a given state.
The data comes from several federal agencies like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and the Department of Education.
Researchers caution against comparing the data with previous years, due to data collection challenges during the pandemic, but they have seen trends that point to a growing need.
“Whatever we are presenting in our data, we know that the need is infinitely greater,” said Maddie Reinert, one of the authors of the report. “Because we are just serving those who are experiencing the most challenges and are actively looking for resources.”
The Northwest, like much of the U.S., has faced an unprecedented shortage of mental health workers who have left the field citing low pay and stressful work conditions. The impact of COVID-19 has also meant more youth and adults are dealing with anxiety, depression or other mental health concerns. In Washington state, an estimated 1 in 5 residents has a diagnosable mental health disorder.
In response to the pandemic’s effects, there have been some moves by policymakers to funnel money toward mental health care: Earlier this year, the Biden administration announced new initiatives to combat the growing mental health crisis, including $105 million to states to fund crisis call centers. In July, 988 rolled out as a shorter, easier-to-remember alternative for the national suicide hotline and now provides text and chat options as well.
Most recently, King County officials unveiled a property tax proposal that would fund, among other behavioral health projects, the construction of five crisis centers in the region. If voters pass the tax levy in April, it would raise an estimated $1.25 billion over nine years.
The Mental Health America researchers pointed to additional strategies they said could mitigate the current mental health crisis nationally, like expanding Medicaid to help people with lower incomes access treatment, which Washington has done. Prevention programs like universal mental health screenings in schools would also mean better outcomes for youth and families by intervening early, they suggested.
“We want to meet this moment with all the urgency that it deserves,” said Schroeder Stribling, the president and CEO of Mental Health America. “We do think that there’s going to be a long tail to the recovery from the mental health impact of the pandemic.”
