Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics, or CCBHCs for short, are entities specifically designed to provide a range of substance use and mental health services, especially for individuals who have the most complex needs. Last year, Uplift Family Services received a two-year, $4,000,000 grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a federal agency with a mission to reduce the impact of substance use and mental illness in the United States, to establish a CCBHC.
With this grant, Pacific Clinics has become one of only five CCBHCs in the state of California.
What is a CCBHC?
A Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic is a new form of provider within the Medicaid program, established by the Excellence in Mental Health Act. CCBHCs are designed to provide whole-person care by integrating physical health with a comprehensive range of mental health and substance use disorder services to vulnerable individuals. Whole-person care means considering all aspects of a person’s health, including their physical, mental, and behavioral health, as well as their socioeconomic status, housing situation, and other social determinants of health which can exacerbate health issues.
CCBHCs are a game-changer, as the behavioral health care system is fraught with disjointed care. States are turning to it as the “gold standard” model of care.
It is critical that all providers involved in a person’s healthcare not only have access to all relevant information but are proactively communicating with one another to gain the full picture of a patient’s health.
Finally, there are nine types of behavioral health services that a CCBHC is responsible for providing, either directly or by contracting with partner organizations. They are:
- Screening, assessment, and diagnosis
- Primary care screening and monitoring
- Crisis care mental health services
- Patient-centered treatment planning
- Outpatient mental health and substance use services
- Targeted case management
- Psychiatric rehabilitation services
- Peer support, counseling, and family support services
- Veteran services
This means that all patients are screened for behavioral health at the beginning of an appointment and a full spectrum of services from primary to specialized care is provided under a single roof, or is contracted through a close partnership.
Why We Chose the CCBHC Model?
Pacific Clinics is committed to doing whatever it takes to strengthen and advocate for children, families, adults, and communities to realize their hopes for behavioral health and well-being. We believe that everyone deserves high-quality healthcare, regardless of one’s situation, including the ability to pay. Simply put, we believe Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics are the best path forward to provide better access to care for the most vulnerable in our communities.
In addition, CCBHCs allow providers to truly understand what is happening in a patient’s life, in order to create and provide the most informed plan of care possible.
Who Can Receive Care?
Because we believe everyone deserves high-quality healthcare, services at our CCBHC are offered on a sliding scale and will be provided regardless of a patient’s ability to pay. Thanks to a two-year federal grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), we are able to bring these services to 2,000 low-income individuals in Santa Clara County.
On a broader scale, CCBHCs are available to anyone in need, with the goal of getting people the care they need regardless of financial or medical barriers. CCBHCs can be an excellent resource to get needed healthcare whether or not the patient is able to pay, is insured, or suffers from serious mental illness, complex health issues, or severe substance addiction.
Pacific Clinics is already seeing success with our CCBHC.
In our first five months of operation, 459 adults and 790 children were screened using standardized measures for depression, adverse childhood experiences, anxiety, suicidal/homicidal risk, and substance use. This has opened the door to identifying individuals at risk for behavioral health issues so that they can be referred to the CCBHC’s array of services and begin recovery.
Learn More About Our CCBHC
If you are interested in learning more about CCBHCs and the work Pacific Clinics is is doing to provide comprehensive mental and behavioral healthcare services, you can visit our Integrated Behavioral Health Program page or e-mailing CCBHC@pacificclinics.org in Santa Clara County.
