Bill to Strengthen Behavioral Health Care Workforce and Save Patients Money Passes Committee Unanimously

DENVER, CO – The Senate Health and Human Services Committee today unanimously passed bipartisan legislation to expand access to behavioral health care by removing barriers for providers and patients. 

HB26-1002, sponsored by Senator Matt Ball, D-Denver, would reduce administrative burdens for providers and patients, modernize licensing requirements, save patients money on out-of-pocket care, and reduce wait times for behavioral health care.

“Mental health care is still far too difficult for Coloradans to access, even when they have insurance,” said Ball. “Coloradans seeking help run into confusion over whether a provider is in-network, outdated contact information that leads to dead ends, and unnecessary barriers that keep qualified providers out of insurance networks. These administrative hurdles cost Coloradans time, money, and in some cases, life-saving care. This bill eliminates barriers so that more Coloradans can get care and more qualified providers can see patients.” 

Coloradans are nearly eleven times more likely to be forced to rely on costly out-of-network providers when seeking behavioral health care than physical health care. In addition to confusing processes to find providers, insurance companies’ slow and inconsistent credentialing processes cause delays for providers eager to see patients and patients wait longer to receive care. 

To increase the amount of in-network providers available to Coloradans, HB26-1002 would set timely standards for the credentialing of providers and ensure qualified, pre-licensed providers get the reimbursement they deserve. The bill, cosponsored by Senator Byron Pelton, R-Sterling, would also require insurance carriers to keep provider information up-to-date and remove misleading “ghost networks,” which show contact information for providers that are not actually covered in a patient’s plan.

Additionally, the bill would reduce the hours to obtain a licensed clinical social worker degree from 3,360 hours to 3,000 hours so that qualified social workers can start seeing patients sooner.

If signed into law, Colorado would join Oklahoma, New York, New Jersey, and Illinois in taking similar action to boost their behavioral health care workforce and patients’ access to timely care.  

HB26-1002 now heads to the Senate floor for further consideration. Track its progress HERE.