GIs struggle to find therapists - Military insurance cuts payments for mental health care
GIs struggle to find therapists - Military insurance cuts payments for mental health care
By Kimberly Hefling
Copyright © 2007, Chicago Tribune and The Associated Press
Published June 11, 2007
WASHINGTON -- Soldiers returning from war are finding it more difficult to get mental health treatment because military insurance is cutting payments to therapists, amid already low reimbursement rates and a tangle of red tape.
Wait lists to see a military doctor extend for months, and it can take weeks to find a private therapist willing to take on members of the military. The challenge appears great in rural areas, where many National Guard and Reserve troops and their families live.
Roughly one-third of returning soldiers seek out mental health counseling in their first year home. They are among the 9.1 million people covered by Tricare, the military health insurance program.
Tricare's mental health benefit is "hindered by fragmented rules and policies, inadequate oversight and insufficient reimbursement," the Defense Department's mental health task force said last month.
The problem also affects spouses. Joyce Lindsey, 46, of Troutdale, Ore., sought grief counseling after her husband died in Afghanistan last September. The therapist recommended by her physician would not take Tricare. Lindsey eventually found one on a provider list, but it took two months.
"I thought, 'Am I ever going to find someone to take this?'" Lindsey said.
The Tricare office that serves Ft. Campbell, Ky., and Ft. Bragg, N.C. -- Army posts with heavy war deployments -- told task force members that it routinely fields complaints about the difficulty in finding mental health specialists who accept Tricare.
"Unfortunately, in some of our communities ... we are maxed out on the available providers," said Lois Krysa, the office's quality manager. "In other areas, the providers just are not willing to sign up to take Tricare assignment, and that is a problem."
In Montana, some families drive two hours to see a physician of any kind who takes Tricare, said Dorrie Hagan, a Montana National Guard official.
Tricare's reimbursement rate is tied to Medicare's, which pays less than civilian employer insurance. The rate for mental health care services fell by 6.4 percent this year as part of an adjustment in reimbursements.
Since 2004, Tricare has sped up payments to encourage doctors to participate, said Austin Camacho, a Tricare spokesman. In some locations, such as Idaho and Alaska, the Defense Department also has raised rates to attract physicians, he said.
Jack Wagoner, a retired military officer and psychologist and psychiatrist in private practice who also works for a Tricare contractor, told defense mental health board members last December that, in general, Tricare pays "considerably lower" than private plans.
According to data from Tricare's Medical Benefits and Reimbursement System office, Tricare pays mental health providers as much as or more than a corporate plan would, although in some cases it is lower.
By Kimberly Hefling
Copyright © 2007, Chicago Tribune and The Associated Press
Published June 11, 2007
WASHINGTON -- Soldiers returning from war are finding it more difficult to get mental health treatment because military insurance is cutting payments to therapists, amid already low reimbursement rates and a tangle of red tape.
Wait lists to see a military doctor extend for months, and it can take weeks to find a private therapist willing to take on members of the military. The challenge appears great in rural areas, where many National Guard and Reserve troops and their families live.
Roughly one-third of returning soldiers seek out mental health counseling in their first year home. They are among the 9.1 million people covered by Tricare, the military health insurance program.
Tricare's mental health benefit is "hindered by fragmented rules and policies, inadequate oversight and insufficient reimbursement," the Defense Department's mental health task force said last month.
The problem also affects spouses. Joyce Lindsey, 46, of Troutdale, Ore., sought grief counseling after her husband died in Afghanistan last September. The therapist recommended by her physician would not take Tricare. Lindsey eventually found one on a provider list, but it took two months.
"I thought, 'Am I ever going to find someone to take this?'" Lindsey said.
The Tricare office that serves Ft. Campbell, Ky., and Ft. Bragg, N.C. -- Army posts with heavy war deployments -- told task force members that it routinely fields complaints about the difficulty in finding mental health specialists who accept Tricare.
"Unfortunately, in some of our communities ... we are maxed out on the available providers," said Lois Krysa, the office's quality manager. "In other areas, the providers just are not willing to sign up to take Tricare assignment, and that is a problem."
In Montana, some families drive two hours to see a physician of any kind who takes Tricare, said Dorrie Hagan, a Montana National Guard official.
Tricare's reimbursement rate is tied to Medicare's, which pays less than civilian employer insurance. The rate for mental health care services fell by 6.4 percent this year as part of an adjustment in reimbursements.
Since 2004, Tricare has sped up payments to encourage doctors to participate, said Austin Camacho, a Tricare spokesman. In some locations, such as Idaho and Alaska, the Defense Department also has raised rates to attract physicians, he said.
Jack Wagoner, a retired military officer and psychologist and psychiatrist in private practice who also works for a Tricare contractor, told defense mental health board members last December that, in general, Tricare pays "considerably lower" than private plans.
According to data from Tricare's Medical Benefits and Reimbursement System office, Tricare pays mental health providers as much as or more than a corporate plan would, although in some cases it is lower.
posted by Carlos T Mock at 9:12 AM
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