The following statement can be attributed to Community Behavioral Healthcare Association of Illinois CEO Blanca Campos:
“The Community Behavioral Healthcare Association would like to thank Governor Pritzker, State Rep. Lindsey LaPointe, House Majority Leader Robyn Gabel, and State Senators Laura Fine, Karina Villa, and Sara Feigenholtz for their support to increase Medicaid rates for psychiatric services. Thanks to their tireless efforts, Medicaid rates for services billed by psychiatrists and APRNs with behavioral health certificates will be increased by $11 million. This is crucial to address the behavioral health workforce shortage, wherein Illinois has the capacity to meet just 24% of the mental health needs of our residents. This investment into our state’s Medicaid system will greatly expand access to psychiatric care across the state.
CBHA would also like to thank several legislators for their advocacy on our initiatives this year. Leader Barbara Hernandez and Sen. Karina Villa helped us establish exam accommodations for ESL students and critical protections for immigrant clinicians. Rep. Bob Morgan and Sen. Suzy Glowiak-Hilton helped us streamline the behavioral health licensure exam process and establish military portability licenses for a multitude of professions. Finally, Rep. Lindsey LaPointe and Sen. Laura Fine championed our Workforce Direct Care Expansion Act to reduce administrative burdens placed on providers that prevent them from serving clients in need.
We look forward to assisting our members with the implementation of these initiatives and exploring other opportunities to expand access to care across the state of Illinois.”
CBHA News 