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Research by a Virginia Tech professor has led to a historic expansion of Medicare mental health coverage, as the United States is currently experiencing the largest expansion of Medicare mental health coverage in history.
More than 60 million Americans are covered by Medicare, a government-run health insurance program for people over 65. Until now, these people have had no access to the services of marriage and family therapists or psychological counselors.
Yet it is estimated that thousands upon thousands of elderly people, veterans, and people with disabilities were in dire need of mental health care and waited months for appointments. Such cases are symptomatic of the United States’ dysfunctional market-driven health care system and inadequate government support.
This situation existed until a law heavily influenced by research at Virginia Tech came into effect in early 2024. This was done through an act of Congress.
The law gave psychologists who were not previously covered by health insurance the opportunity to sign up as Medicare providers. So far, about 43,000 psychologists and marriage and family therapists have opted in, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. This means that the 60 million Medicare beneficiaries now have access to services that were not previously available to them.
According to the Administration for Community Living (ACL), the U.S. will see a sharp increase in Medicare enrollees due to the aging population, meaning the number of providers will have to increase to keep pace. Currently, about 65 million older adults are covered by Medicare. The ACL projects that number will rise to 90 to 95 million in the next 20 to 25 years.
The changes are being spearheaded by Dr. Matthew Fullen, an associate professor of counselor education at Virginia Tech. Fullen is committed to ensuring that medical professionals can accept Medicare insurance.
“Modernizing access to mental health care for Medicare beneficiaries is incredibly timely,” Fullen explains. “Working with colleagues and graduate students to explain why this change is necessary has been the highlight of my career.”
“This line of research helped clarify how many providers are affected by this outdated policy,” Fullen explains. “Then we added a qualitative study that focused on individual Medicare beneficiaries who were unable to find services because such a large portion of the mental health workforce was not included.”
