A quarter of parents report their children are not getting mental health support

A Harvard survey of 173,000 U.S. households found that among families with a child needing mental health care, about 24.8% reported unmet needs and many cited access difficulties; gaps were larger in homeschooled, single-parent, uninsured and Medicaid households.

A large survey covering 173,000 U.S. households found that many parents who reported at least one child needing mental health care said that care was not received. The researchers reported that 24.8% of those parents indicated an unmet need, while 16.6% described difficulty accessing care and 21.8% said access problems were the reason care was not received. The burden was reported as larger in homeschooled households and in single-parent, multi-child, uninsured and Medicaid households. The study notes differences by race, ethnicity and other socioeconomic factors. Key findings: - One in five surveyed households had at least one child who needed mental health care during the study period. - Among parents of those children, 24.8% reported an unmet need; 16.6% reported difficulty accessing care; and 21.8% said access difficulty prevented care. - Higher rates of unmet need were reported for homeschooled children (over 30%) and for single-parent, multi-child, uninsured and Medicaid households. - The researchers and affiliated authors highlighted racial and socioeconomic disparities and mentioned state-level strategies such as expanding the child mental health workforce and integrating mental health into primary care. Summary: The study indicates persistent gaps in access to child mental health care and identifies specific groups that reported larger shortfalls. Researchers outlined possible strategies but next formal policy or implementation steps are undetermined at this time.