Assessing Integrated Care for Individuals with Co-Occurring Mental Health & Substance Use Disorders

In New York State, half of people who suffer from a mental health disorder simultaneously struggle with some form of substance use, yet only about 1 in 10 receive appropriate treatment for these conditions.

When conditions are not managed well, people who have both mental health and substance use disorders experience worse outcomes, such as higher rates of HIV infection, drug relapse, rehospitalization, depression, and suicide.

To address these co-occurring issues, NYHealth partnered with National Development and Research Institutes in 2008 to establish the first statewide Center for Excellence in Integrated Care (CEIC). CEIC’s chief purpose was to transform the services and increase the capacity of the approximately 1,000 licensed mental health and certified substance use service sites in New York State. CEIC provided tools and assistance to these sites to deliver services for both mental health and substance use conditions. CEIC also offered implementation support to participating addiction and mental health outpatient clinics on providing standardized, recovery-oriented, and culturally responsive integrated care.

In 2012, NYHealth awarded Health Policy Associates, Inc., a grant to conduct a comprehensive examination of the Foundation’s efforts to integrate mental health and substance use services through this initiative.