Neglecting mental health services is bankrupting our healthcare system

President Trump and Republican congressional leaders justifiably want to curb the alarming growth in government healthcare spending. Their proposed solution? Cut $880 billion in federal funds from Medicaid over the next ten years.

Their plan wouldn't necessarily reduce government spending. At best, it would just shift the burden from federal taxpayers to state taxpayers. In fact, such cuts could increase overall government spending. That's because Medicaid is the most important financing source of mental health services. Expanding access to mental health services would yield billions in savings — and produce a healthier population.

Roughly one in five American adults will suffer from a mental health condition this year. Half of Americans struggle with mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder or schizophrenia at some point in their lifetimes.

Mental health conditions are the most expensive medical condition in the country. In 2013, the United States spent more than $200 billion treating mental health disorders. That total is about $50 billion higher than what was spent combating heart conditions.

Patients are all too familiar with this financial burden. Healthcare costs for the average Medicaid adult who doesn't have any chronic conditions total $4,600 each year, according to the Partnership to Fight Chronic Disease, the non-profit I lead. But for Medicaid adults suffering from a mental health condition, annual healthcare spending more than doubles, reaching a whopping $11,200.