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Behavioral Health Service Delivery in Primary Care: National Trends and State-Level Variations, 2005-2024

Published: 2026-09-15
Updated: 2026-09-15

Project Description

Using Medical Expenditure Panel Survey data from 2005 to 2024, this study will estimate national and state-level trends in the volume and share of behavioral health care delivered by primary care physicians relative to specialty behavioral health providers. The analysis, which will incorporate a geriatric primary care definition and review comparison group specifications, will generate benchmarks to guide reimbursement policy and integrated care investments.

Program on Health Workforce Research and Policy

Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research

The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

CB# 7590

725 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7590

BHWorkforce@unc.edu

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This project is supported by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under grant number U81HP46529 Cooperative Agreement for a Regional Center for Health Workforce Studies. This information or content and conclusions are those of the author and should not be construed as the official position or policy of, nor should any endorsements be inferred by SAMHSA, HRSA, HHS or the U.S. Government.