By Madeline Batalden
Minnesota is experiencing mental health challenges that are exacerbated by the fact that care is frequently inaccessible. For youth, the issue has become a crisis.
Three primary causes of inaccessibility are high costs, a workforce shortage, and a lack of diversity in staffing, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness Minnesota (NAMI MN).
About a third of adults struggling with mental health issues didn’t get help because of financial barriers, according to NAMI MN. And how can parents get care for their children if they can’t get it for themselves?
Lauren Daniels, the clinical director for Emma Norton Services, an organization that houses and supports formerly homeless people dealing with mental illness, chemical dependency, and chronic health conditions, said even with insurance, mental health services and substance use programs are expensive.
“It’s ridiculous, I had a family member last year who went to an intensive outpatient substance use program they billed him $48,000 for a six week program that meets nine hours a week,” Daniels said. Ultimately her family member paid $6,000—his yearly deductible.
Senator Heather Gustafson and Senator Tou Xiong have proposed a bill to help address the problem: funding for a Ramsey County youth mental health urgent care room that is free for its 13- to 18- year-old patients. It was introduced and first read on Feb. 13, although no further action has been taken by the senate.
The “urgency room” is an existing, recently-started program specifically for teenagers experiencing mental health crises. It’s an alternative to the emergency room, and it is completely free even if insurance does not cover the cost. The urgency room offers services such as 24/7 crisis phone support, crisis stabilization services, and comprehensive mental health assessments, according to its website.
Gustafson and Xiong’s bill states that the money is to be “for the ongoing operation of the youth mental health urgency room.”
The financial burden that comes with mental health care isn’t the only barrier, according to at least one state senator. “We need more capacity,” said Senator Rich Draheim.
Draheim says there also aren’t enough practitioners and facilities open to receiving more patients. Even if someone can afford to get the care, it isn’t guaranteed that there will be someone there to provide that care. There are overflowing state funded facilities that don’t have any more room.
Sue Abderholden, the Executive Director for NAMI MN, agrees that more care is needed. She added: “When I say workforce shortages, it’s not just the number of mental health professionals, but also the diversity of them.”
According to an article from Ambitions ABA Therapy the vast majority of therapists are middle-aged white women, leaving many people struggling to find therapists who share their identities and experiences.
Carolina Gentry, a public-school therapist at Johnson High School in St. Paul, is the only therapist for 1200 students. She said, “it’s never going to be enough therapists, the need is so high right now. Yeah, we wish that we had more people.”
According to Abderholden, because 50% of mental illnesses emerge by 14 years old, high school is a time when it is crucial to have support provided. She says if students don’t have enough support in their formative years, often it can lead to more severe issues later in life.
Looking at the state budget for this biennium, Minnesota legislators are going to be forced to underfund many essential programs. As a result, the near future of the mental health system is not likely to improve.
Madeline Batalden, a freshman at Central High School in Saint Paul, produced this story through ThreeSixty Journalism’s Capitol Reporting Workshop sponsored by the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation in February 2025. Madeline worked with Sahan Journal Reporter Alfonzo Galvan to complete her story.
