Addressing the Core Issue in Children’s Mental Health: Early Intervention and Prevention

Unfortunately, many (at least half!) of children and adolescents who have mental health disorders are never identified or treated. Those who do receive treatment are often years behind in necessary interventions. Although all children and adolescents who are on Medicaid are entitled to mental health screening, a variety of factors, including poor reimbursement to clinicians, results in lack of screening for many if not most. For those of you who are interested in better understanding mental health early intervention, please see my article, “Addressing the Core Issue in Children’s Mental Health: Early Intervention and Prevention.”