American Mental Health Services: Perspective Through Care Patterns for 100 Adults, with Aggregate Facility, Service, and Cost Estimates

This chapter describes the mental health epidemiology and service delivery picture for 100 adults drawn at random from the American population. It also presents a description of the characteristics of mental health facilities, their services, available human resources, and aggregate revenues and costs. Unlike many other nations around the globe, America has no single mental health "system." Rather, after years of starts and stops, US mental health care still consists of parallel activities operated by public and private entities across four care sectors. As a result, many individuals who need care do not receive it, and many who do receive care do not achieve the outcomes they are seeking.