“Georgia needs to think about how we build and fund a mental health and substance use system that matches the needs of our population,” Laura Colbert, executive director of nonprofit Georgians for a Healthy Future, told CNHI. “To date, we haven’t really done that.”

According to a 2020 report by nonprofit Mental Health America, Georgia ranks last out of all states for access to care for mentally ill residents — which includes access to insurance coverage and treatment. Providers have only been further strained since the pandemic upended health systems.

“Across ages, geographies and racial groups, there’s been a really big spike in depression, anxiety, alcohol and drug use, and other kinds of mental health conditions,” Colbert said of increased prevalence during the pandemic. “… There’s just this incredibly expanded need on top of kind of the constant need that we had before the pandemic. Because the need has expanded, we just need so many more resources to help handle it. There’s a pandemic surge and there’s also a mental health and substance use surge happening at the same time.”

Another event that’s moved online is the signature event for Georgians for a Healthy Future, Health Care Unscrambled, where experts, advocates and policymakers get together to talk about public health policy, which often includes a case for the state to expand Medicaid.

The event wraps up on Thursday with a panel discussion on the impact of COVID-19 on racial and mental health disparities.

In a non-emergency such as a discharge to post-acute care, it hasn’t been established how hospitals must disclose any out-of-network costs to patients ahead of time, said Laura Colbert, executive director of Georgians for a Healthy Future.

She fears some patients won’t be fully protected with the insurance commissioner’s directive if they’re moved out of network.

“Is it just a piece of paper in a full stack of papers that you sign when you’re filling out all the intake forms?” she said. “Or is it what we would like to see, you only see this paper as a standalone piece if you are being referred out of network at that time, and with a very clear cost estimate that is line by line?”

“If there are quality metrics that aren’t being met and we as the public can look and see where Georgia is falling short, we can hold our state decision-makers accountable,” said Laura Colbert, executive director of the consumer advocacy group Georgians for a Healthy Future.

“The greater the state reports, the better,” she said.

“If there are quality metrics that aren’t being met and we as the public can look and see where Georgia is falling short, we can hold our state decision-makers accountable,” said Laura Colbert, executive director of the consumer advocacy group Georgians for a Healthy Future.

“The greater the state reports, the better,” she said.

“In a state like Georgia, where our health care system is really insufficient and not meeting the needs of the population already, this just further breaks down what should be a very close relationship between individuals and communities and their health care system,” said Laura Colbert, executive director of Georgians for a Healthy Future.

“Every Georgian, whether they know it or not, benefits from the standards and protections that have been put in place by the Affordable Care Act,” Laura Colbert, executive director of the nonpartisan Georgians for a Healthy Future, said at Tuesday’s press conference. “If the Supreme Court were to strike down the ACA, the consequences would be felt personally and deeply by Georgia households across the state.

“The collapse of the Affordable Care Act, if the lawsuit leads to that, would be disproportionately felt by Georgians of color and rural Georgians,” she added. “These Georgians are already shouldering the heaviest burdens of the pandemic and faced unfair barriers to care even before the pandemic began.”