NACHC: Integrated Behavioral Health Is Working in CHCs, but Payment Reform Has to Catch Up
NACHC's June 29 national brief argues that community health centers have proven integrated primary care and behavioral health can work, but current payment structures still underpay same-day behavioral health access, care coordination, telehealth infrastructure, and risk adjustment for complex patients. The brief cites 34 million annual CHC patients, nearly 3.3 million behavioral-health patients in 2024, telehealth adoption rising from 42% to 98% between 2019 and 2024, and Medicaid supplying 44% of total CHC revenue — making stable Medicaid coverage and VBC models central to sustaining integrated care.
Key takeaways
- The operating thesis is national: integrated behavioral health needs payment for same-day access, care coordination, telehealth infrastructure, and non-visit team work.
- For FQHCs, Medicaid stability is the load-bearing issue because Medicaid accounts for 44% of total CHC revenue in the NACHC framing.
Primary source
NACHCFQHC Talent. (2026, June 29). NACHC: Integrated Behavioral Health Is Working in CHCs, but Payment Reform Has to Catch Up. Primary source: NACHC. Retrieved June 30, 2026, from https://www.fqhctalent.com/intel/nachc-integrated-behavioral-health-structural-reform-june-2026
More in Funding & Budget
Dec 31
CalAIM Section 1115 Waiver Expires December 2026 — $1.2B/Year at Stake
Jun 11
California's June 11 Budget Deal Delays the ~$1B FQHC Reimbursement Cut by 12 Months — a $1.034 Billion General-Fund Reprieve for Health Centers, Plus the MCO Tax and Softened Immigrant Cuts
Jun 10
California Breaks Ground on a New Modesto Youth Behavioral-Health Center — a >$5M BHCIP Award and a Rare Central Valley Infrastructure Win
Jun 10
The $50B rural health fund is now real money with real deadlines: Florida June 17, Alaska June 22, Indiana July 1, Tennessee July 6-20 — and FQHCs must compete for every dollar