A newly-released issue brief provides an updated snapshot of the need for behavioral health care and experiences accessing it in the Commonwealth as of 2020/2021, based on a new survey commissioned by the Blue Cross-Blue Shield Foundation.

The survey gathered information on the experiences of Massachusetts adults during the 12 months prior to the survey, which covered the period January 2020 through March 2021.

More than a quarter (27%) of Massachusetts adults reported a behavioral health care need for themselves over the survey period, with the level of need disproportionately high among younger adults ages 19-39 (50% reporting a need versus 17% for adults ages 40-64), among adults who identify as a race or ethnicity other than non-Hispanic White (39% reporting a need versus 22% for non-Hispanic White adults), and among adults with lower family incomes (39% reporting a need versus 20% for adults with higher income).

More detailed information is available in the brief here.