Skip to content
ProPublica Donate
ProPublica Donate
Health Care

Mental Health

Director of Arizona Medicaid Agency Resigns Following Fraud Scheme Response

Under Carmen Heredia’s leadership, the agency withheld payment to more than 300 businesses as it investigated fraud allegations. The state’s swift response left patients homeless, ProPublica and the Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting found.

by Mary Hudetz,

Utah Farmers Signed Up for Federally Funded Therapy. Then the Money Stopped.

Farmers are dying by suicide at the third-highest rate by vocation in Utah. But after a federal program offering mental health support ran out of money, the state did not continue it.

by Jessica Schreifels, The Salt Lake Tribune,

Local Reporting Network

New Utah Law Seeks to Crack Down on Life Coaches Offering Therapy Without a License

Some therapists who lose their licenses transition to the unregulated life coaching industry, an investigation by The Salt Lake Tribune and ProPublica found. A new law makes it clear that only licensed therapists can provide mental health treatment.

by Jessica Schreifels, The Salt Lake Tribune,

Local Reporting Network

Dozens of People Died in Arizona Sober Living Homes as State Officials Fumbled Medicaid Fraud Response

Arizona officials acknowledged that a fraud scheme targeting Indigenous people with addictions cost taxpayers $2.5 billion. But they haven’t accounted publicly for the number of deaths tied to the scheme.

by Mary Hudetz, ProPublica, and Hannah Bassett, Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting,

Impact of Our Reporting
Caret

America’s Mental Barrier

He Died Without Getting Mental Health Care He Sought. A New Lawsuit Says His Insurer’s Ghost Network Is to Blame.

The mother of Ravi Coutinho, the subject of a recent ProPublica investigation, is suing Centene for publishing “misleading” information that gave her son a false impression about the kinds of mental health care that were actually available.

by Max Blau,

Culture of Cruelty

We Found Widespread Abuse of Disabled Patients at an Illinois Facility. The DOJ Is Investigating.

A federal probe into Illinois’ treatment of disabled people will examine abuse and neglect allegations at state-run residential institutions — including Choate, the subject of a yearlong Capitol News Illinois and ProPublica investigation.

by Beth Hundsdorfer and Molly Parker, Capitol News Illinois,

Local Reporting Network

America’s Mental Barrier

Insurers Failed to Comply With Mental Health Coverage Law, Department of Labor Report Finds

The probe found widespread noncompliance and violations of federal law in how health plans and insurers cover mental health care, echoing the findings of a recent ProPublica investigation.

by Duaa Eldeib, Maya Miller, Annie Waldman and Max Blau,

Series

Series: America’s Mental Barrier: How Insurers Interfere With Mental Health Care

Series: Veterans Without Assistance: Investigating Mental Health Care in the VA System

51 stories published since 2008

He Died Without Getting Mental Health Care He Sought. A New Lawsuit Says His Insurer’s Ghost Network Is to Blame.

by Max Blau,

We Found Widespread Abuse of Disabled Patients at an Illinois Facility. The DOJ Is Investigating.

by Beth Hundsdorfer and Molly Parker, Capitol News Illinois,

Insurers Failed to Comply With Mental Health Coverage Law, Department of Labor Report Finds

by Duaa Eldeib, Maya Miller, Annie Waldman and Max Blau,

Is a New Mississippi Law Decreasing Jailings of People Awaiting Mental Health Treatment? The State Doesn’t Know.

by Gwen Dilworth, Mississippi Today,

Her Mental Health Treatment Was Helping. That’s Why Insurance Cut Off Her Coverage.

by Maya Miller and Duaa Eldeib,

Insurers Continue to Rely on Doctors Whose Judgments Have Been Criticized by Courts

by Duaa Eldeib and Maya Miller, with research by Kirsten Berg,

UnitedHealth Is Strategically Limiting Access to Critical Treatment for Kids With Autism

by Annie Waldman,

How UnitedHealth’s Playbook for Limiting Mental Health Coverage Puts Countless Americans’ Treatment at Risk

by Annie Waldman,

Arizona Cracked Down on Medicaid Fraud That Targeted Native Americans. It Left Patients Without Care.

by Hannah Bassett, Arizona Center for Investigative Reporting, and Mary Hudetz, ProPublica, photography by Adriana Zehbrauskas, special to ProPublica,

New Biden Administration Rules Aim to Hold Insurers Accountable for Mental Health Care Coverage

by Maya Miller and Annie Waldman,

“I Don’t Want to Die”: Needing Mental Health Care, He Got Trapped in His Insurer’s Ghost Network

by Max Blau, illustrations by Vanessa Saba, special to ProPublica,

Struggling to Find an In-Network Mental Health Provider? Here’s What You Can Do.

by Max Blau,

What Mental Health Care Protections Exist in Your State?

by Annie Waldman and Maya Miller,

Why It’s So Hard to Find a Therapist Who Takes Insurance

by Annie Waldman, Maya Miller, Duaa Eldeib and Max Blau, photography by Tony Luong, design by Zisiga Mukulu,

When Therapists Lose Their Licenses, Some Turn to the Unregulated Life Coaching Industry Instead

by Jessica Schreifels, The Salt Lake Tribune,

This Mississippi Hospital Transfers Some Patients to Jail to Await Mental Health Treatment

by Isabelle Taft, Mississippi Today,

Mississippi Lawmakers Move to Limit the Jail Detentions of People Awaiting Mental Health Treatment

by Kate Royals, Mississippi Today,

Senate Veterans’ Affairs Chair Calls for More Mental Health Care Providers in Rural Areas

by ProPublica,

After Decades of Imprisoning Patients, Idaho Approves Secure Mental Health Facility

by Audrey Dutton,

Lawmakers Could Limit When County Officials in Mississippi Can Jail People Awaiting Psychiatric Treatment

by Isabelle Taft, Mississippi Today,

In Crisis, She Went to an Illinois Facility. Two Years Later, She Still Isn’t Able to Leave.

by Molly Parker and Beth Hundsdorfer, Capitol News Illinois,

Veterans Affairs Secretary Vows to Increase Staffing at Clinic Tied to Two Deadly Shootings

by ProPublica,

5 Takeaways From Our Investigation Into How Mississippi Counties Jail People for Mental Illness

by Isabelle Taft, Mississippi Today,

How the VA Fails Veterans on Mental Health

by Kathleen McGrory and Neil Bedi,

Three Days of Tragedy: How a VA Clinic’s Inability to Help Veterans in Crisis Destroyed Two Families

by Kathleen McGrory and Neil Bedi, ProPublica, photography by Loren Elliott for ProPublica,

Idaho Keeps Some Psychiatric Patients in Prison, Ignoring Decades of Warnings About the Practice

by Audrey Dutton,

Mississippi Jailed More Than 800 People Awaiting Psychiatric Treatment in a Year. Just One Jail Meets State Standards.

by Isabelle Taft, Mississippi Today,

Legislators Demand Hearings on Illinois Mental Health Facility Where Staff Abused Patients and Covered It Up

by Molly Parker, Lee Enterprises Midwest, and Beth Hundsdorfer, Capitol News Illinois,

New Report Says Nurses at Illinois Facility Forced Patients to Dig Through Their Own Feces

by Beth Hundsdorfer, Capitol News Illinois, and Molly Parker, Lee Enterprises Midwest,

Patients Went to This Isolated Facility for Treatment. Instead, Nearly Two Dozen Were Charged With Crimes.

by Molly Parker, Lee Enterprises Midwest and Beth Hundsdorfer, Capitol News Illinois,

Child Welfare Experts Say New Mexico Can’t Put Kids in Homeless Shelters Just Because It Lacks Other Beds

by Ed Williams, Searchlight New Mexico,

Report Finds “Code of Silence” at Mental Health Facility Where Staff Abused and Neglected Patients

by Beth Hundsdorfer, Capitol News Illinois, and Molly Parker, Lee Enterprises Midwest,

Chilling Audio Provides Rare Glimpse Into Abuse at Troubled Illinois Residential Facility

by Beth Hundsdorfer, Capitol News Illinois, and Molly Parker, Lee Enterprises Midwest,

Critical Omissions Plague Texas Gun Background Check Law

by Jeremy Schwartz and Kiah Collier,

“We’re at a Crisis Point”: NY Attorney General Hearing Spotlights Child Mental Health Care Failures

by Abigail Kramer and Gabriel Poblete, THE CITY,

New York State Failed to Provide Legally Required Mental Health Care to Kids, Lawsuit Claims

by Abigail Kramer, THE CITY,

Cuomo Set Out to “Transform” Mental Health Care for Kids. Now They Can’t Get Treatment.

by Abigail Kramer, THE CITY, photography by Sarah Blesener for ProPublica,

In Men, It’s Parkinson’s. In Women, It’s Hysteria.

by David Armstrong,

University of Illinois at Chicago Missed Warning Signs of Research Going Awry, Letters Show

by Jodi S. Cohen,

Illinois Regulators Are Investigating a Psychiatrist Whose Research With Children Was Marred by Misconduct

by Jodi S. Cohen,

He Said He Faked Mental Illness to Avoid Prison. Now, Accused in 2 Killings, He’s Sent Back to a State Hospital.

by Jayme Fraser, The Malheur Enterprise,

Steve Cohen Is Spending Millions to Help Veterans. Why Are People Angry?

by Isaac Arnsdorf,

Documents Raise New Concerns About Lithium Study on Children

by Jodi S. Cohen,

The $3 Million Research Breakdown

by Jodi S. Cohen,

Oregon Doctors Warned That a Killer and Rapist Would Likely Attack Again. Then the State Released Him.

by Jayme Fraser, The Malheur Enterprise,

Lost Mothers

by Nina Martin,

In a Lonely Corner of Coney Island, a Fight Over Care for the Vulnerable

by Joaquin Sapien,

Federal Judge Sees New York State Conspiracy to Thwart Care for Mentally Ill

by Joaquin Sapien,

New Jersey Psychology Practice Revealed Patients’ Mental Disorders in Debt Lawsuits

by Charles Ornstein,

Why Hospitals Are Failing Civilians Who Get PTSD

by Lois Beckett,

What We’re Watching

During Donald Trump’s second presidency, ProPublica will focus on the areas most in need of scrutiny. Here are some of the issues our reporters will be watching — and how to get in touch with them securely.

Learn more about our reporting team. We will continue to share our areas of interest as the news develops.

Photo of Sharon Lerner
Sharon Lerner

I cover health and the environment and the agencies that govern them, including the Environmental Protection Agency.

Photo of Andy Kroll
Andy Kroll

I cover justice and the rule of law, including the Justice Department, U.S. attorneys and the courts.

Photo of Melissa Sanchez
Melissa Sanchez

I report on immigration and labor, and I am based in Chicago.

Photo of Jesse Coburn
Jesse Coburn

I cover housing and transportation, including the companies working in those fields and the regulators overseeing them.

If you don’t have a specific tip or story in mind, we could still use your help. Sign up to be a member of our federal worker source network to stay in touch.

Most Read

    The USDA Wouldn’t Let Her Give Up Her House When She Couldn’t Pay Her Mortgage. Instead, It Crushed Her With Debt.

    The USDA failed to follow its own guidance for a rural mortgage program, taking years to foreclose on delinquent loans. As a result, 55 Maine borrowers racked up, on average, $110,000 in additional debt before the agency moved to take the homes.

    by Sawyer Loftus, Bangor Daily News,

    Local Reporting Network

    He Came to the U.S. to Support His Sick Child. He Was Detained. Then He Disappeared.

    Like most of the more than 230 Venezuelan men deported to a Salvadoran prison, José Manuel Ramos Bastidas had followed U.S. immigration rules. Then Trump rewrote them.

    by Melissa Sanchez, ProPublica; Perla Trevizo, ProPublica and The Texas Tribune; Mica Rosenberg and Jeff Ernsthausen, ProPublica; Ronna Rísquez, Alianza Rebelde Investiga; and Adrián González, Cazadores de Fake News,

    The Most Interesting Email I Ever Received: Remembering the Incredible Life of DIY Geneticist Jill Viles

    In 2013, ProPublica reporter David Epstein was contacted by a woman with a wild story and a batch of photos she believed were clues to the mystery of her condition. Turns out, she was right.

    by David Epstein,

    RFK Jr. Wants to Change a Program That Stopped Vaccine Makers From Leaving the U.S. Market. They Could Flee Again.

    The Vaccine Injury Compensation Program stabilizes the nation’s childhood immunization system while paying those harmed by rare side effects. If the program topples, it could threaten access to vaccines.

    by Patricia Callahan,

    Trump Administration Prepares to Drop Seven Major Housing Discrimination Cases

    Federal housing officials spent years investigating cities from Chicago to Memphis to Corpus Christi for putting industrial plants and unwanted facilities in poor, nonwhite neighborhoods. Now, under Trump, the agency plans to drop the cases.

    by Jesse Coburn,