Mental health options for seniors

Dear Friend,

If you’re a family that has been impacted by the mental health crisis, you know just how hard it can be to navigate available mental health services. This can be especially difficult when it comes to our older loved ones who rely on access through Medicare. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

I just introduced bipartisan legislation to increase access to mental health care services for older Americans by ensuring Medicare beneficiaries have access to clinical psychologists across all settings of care. The Increasing Mental Health Options Act of 2023, would update the Medicare program to ensure Medicare beneficiaries can access clinical psychologists directly for mental health services.

Clinical psychologists are doctoral-level providers who play an important role delivering mental health services to the Medicare population. However, the Medicare program does not currently recognize clinical psychologists as independent care providers across all care settings.

By expanding Medicare beneficiaries' access to clinical psychologists, we take an important step in improving access to health care and mental health services that New Mexicans deserve.