The Colorado Behavioral Health Administration has launched an online portal, known as the Performance Hub, to increase transparency and accountability in the state’s mental health system. The data published on the portal shows that Southern and Eastern Coloradans accessed behavioral health care services more frequently than any other regions in the state last year.
The Performance Hub aims to help identify gaps in care, make systemic improvements, and address health care inequities. It includes information about the number of people who received publicly funded community mental health services in each county per year, the number of residential beds for substance use disorder treatment in Colorado by county, and the number of complaints made to the administration annually about behavioral health services.
The Behavioral Health Administration was launched two years ago with the aim of ensuring all Coloradans have access to quality mental health and substance use disorder services, regardless of where they live or their ability to pay. The law that created the administration requires it to establish a monitoring system to track the capacity of such services and the performance of all behavioral health providers, and to inform needed changes within the system.
The data shows that the San Luis Valley and several counties in eastern Colorado had the highest numbers of residents who received publicly funded community mental health services in 2023, while Lake and Logan counties and several counties in southern Colorado had the highest numbers of residents who received addiction services funded by the administration last year. The state may need to increase the number of residential beds available for people with substance use disorders living in rural areas, as most beds are clustered in urban counties, and 50 out of 64 counties have no beds available for people with substance use disorders.
The Performance Hub also allows Coloradans to make complaints about providers licensed by the administration, with 64 complaints made during the first three months of this year, up from 43 complaints during the same period in 2023. The Behavioral Health Administration investigates complaints, which can include concerns about mistreatment, denied services, poor quality of care, injuries, abuse or neglect, and treatment errors.
The Behavioral Health Administration plans to study data published on the site in the coming months and years to improve care statewide. The Performance Hub will be updated quarterly, and new metrics will appear on the portal by the end of July. The Behavioral Health Administration will also host public conversations to help people learn to use the tool.
Mental Health Colorado leaders recently released Know Your Rights information for Coloradans who need mental health and substance use services. Making that kind of information available to people who use the Performance Hub could clarify how Coloradans can respond if they suspect they’re facing discrimination or that their health insurance won’t cover certain mental health services.
On Wednesday morning, the Behavioral Health Administration announced an online portal, OwnPath, that directs Coloradans to mental health care by ZIP code. Coloradans can complete a short survey to help the state improve the Performance Hub and can watch the site evolve online.
