About one in five Americans report that there was a time when they or a family member in their household thought they needed mental health care but did not receive it for various reasons, according to a poll conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Among the 21% of Americans who did not get such care, the most common reason was “couldn’t afford the cost” (13%), which was closely followed by “insurance wouldn’t cover it” at 12%. “Afraid or embarrassed to seek care” was cited by 10% of those who had forgone mental health care, and 8% said that the reason was “didn’t know where to go to get care,” the Kaiser report said.

The Kaiser Health Tracking Poll was conducted April 12-19, 2016, among a nationally representative sample of 1,201 adults aged 18 years and older.

rfranki@frontlinemedcom.com

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