Achieving Integrated Care for Mental Health and Substance Use

Beginning in 2008, the Foundation made a strategic investment to increase the number of providers capable of screening, diagnosing, and treating both substance use and mental health disorders simultaneously.

More than 60% of New Yorkers with a claim for a substance use disorder also have a psychiatric disorder, while more than 50% with schizophrenia also have a diagnosis of a substance use disorder.

To advance this area, NYHealth established the Center for Excellence in Integrated Care (CEIC). At the end of 2012, after a five-year investment, NYHealth had successfully achieved its goals in this area. CEIC met its target of working with 600 of the 1,000 licensed mental health and substance use programs across the State to help them make the necessary changes to address people’s mental health and substance use problems at the same time. Early evaluation results of the initiative show that these sites are now offering integrated care for people with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders.