Social Workforce Development and Medicaid Expansion: Mapping Areas of (Mis)alignment

Authors: Lisa de Saxe Zerden, PhD, MSW | Brianna Lombardi, PhD, MSW | Shiyou Wu, MSW

Topics: Behavioral Health, Integration and Collaboration, Medicaid

Research Center: Carolina Health Workforce Research Center

January 8, 2021

Despite efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid expansion has increased access to primary care, as well as the availability of behavioral health services, including treatment for both mental health and substance use disorders. However, increasing the availability of health and behavioral health services requires an increase in providers. Several federal programs support training providers to meet the growing need of a trained health workforce.

This article evaluates whether a program on specialized social work training in integrated health care settings is aligned with state Medicaid expansion.

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