Many rural areas of Virginia and beyond are experiencing a mental health crisis with a high demand for care and limited resources available.
- New River Valley has a mental health provider deficit, with 68% of the population considered underserved. (2021 New River Valley Community Health Assessment)
- The average number of poor mental health days are higher in the Rockbridge Area than Virginia overall. (2021 Rockbridge County Community Health Assessment)
- Residents of Culpeper, Madison and Orange County identified behavioral health services as the top service that needs strengthening in the community (2020 Culpeper, Madison and Orange Counties Community Health Needs Assessment)
- Provider access isn’t just a rural problem. In Northern Virginia alone, 47% of adults seeking therapy or counseling are unable to get it – mainly due to cost. (WTOP)
The Virginia Telemental Health Initiative (VTMHI) creates consistent access to behavioral and mental health care via telehealth to Virginians experiencing barriers to such care.
By collaborating with experts across the state, VTMHI finds the right providers with the right specialties to assist those in need of care throughout Virginia.
VTMHI creates a system that allows behavioral and mental health services received to integrate with primary care visits, providing Virginians with lower incomes, who are medically underserved, and who are un- or under-insured with access to holistic care and a medical home at their local clinic.
VTMHI is now seeing patients through six participating free and charitable clinics across Virginia. Patients can contact the clinics directly to determine their eligibility and make appointments. Click here to access contact information for VTMHI-participating free and charitable clinics.
