Years ago, before the pandemic highlighted mental health awareness and before recent major insurance overhauls began further limiting healthcare access, Whitefish psychologist Sara Boilen and her colleagues noticed people in the community were struggling.
“We just noticed people were not doing well,” Boilen said. “Some people are not able to access therapy. Some people just need mental health basics.”
Boilen and other professionals, including Gaelen Engler and Katie Boyd, launched a series of educational workshops through a nonprofit eventually named Community-MindEd. The workshops were geared toward employees of local businesses, organizations and institutions to help manage stress as the busy summer months in the service and seasonal industries deteriorated their mental health.
Initially, therapists visited establishments like Fleur Bake Shop or met with Montana Conservation Corps staff for 60 to 90 minutes, guiding them through breathing exercises or teaching stress reduction methods.
“What are the basics of mental health that people aren’t learning about in school or from their parents? It was just one more way of reducing barriers,” Boilen said. “These are not revolutionary skills — this is basic stuff.”
But Boilen said feedback from those workshops indicated many people lacked those basic skills and gaps needed to be filled.
As therapists with the nonprofit continued offering mental health workshops over the years, the board of directors noticed a large segment of the community could not access therapy because of their financial situations.
“As we were talking to therapists, we saw that people need to be able to afford therapy,” Boilen said. “There are all these changes in the Marketplace, people can’t afford their premium. People are getting kicked off Medicaid. All of these things are happening and our original mission was to make it so everybody can be mentally well.”
Since the One Big Beautiful Bill Act passed last year, changes in funding and eligibility have led to a dramatic drop in coverage as Medicaid work requirements are set to go into effect in Montana in July. Last year, it was estimated that about 17.5% of Medicaid expansion enrollees would lose coverage because of the work requirements while an additional 1.5% to 2.5% of enrollees will lose coverage because of premiums.
As one tool to offset coverage losses, Community-MindEd this year started offering mental health scholarships for patients whose financial limitations prevent their access to therapy.
Clients can apply for the scholarship while any provider can sign a contract for a 10-session reimbursement at a set rate and be part of the network.
Even as more people have started seeking therapy in recent years, the demographics of those trends are disproportionate across the socioeconomic spectrum.
According to a National Library of Medicine study that examined psychotherapy pattern changes between 2018 and 2021, there was a significant increase in use among socioeconomically advantaged adults with mild or moderate distress. This rise also coincided with teletherapy expansion. But despite the gains, the study concluded psychotherapy access may be unevenly distributed.
Community-MindEd’s board members are trying to combat these statistics and expand access among all income levels.
“We really do believe this can change lives,” Boilen said. “Therapy can really change a person.”
Since serving on Community-MindEd’s board for the last few years, Tommy Shea said he is part of a diverse group of community members including teachers, retirees and therapists who all who have the shared goal of increasing mental health access.
“I’ve dealt with mental health struggles my whole life and it seemed like the best way to try and actually give back to the community and volunteer my time,” Shea said.
To apply for a scholarship, visit www.communitymindedmt.org.
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