Women's Health USA 2006

Health Services Utilization

Mental Health Care Utilization

In 2004, an estimated 27.5 million U.S. adults reported receiving mental health treatment in the past year. Women represented more than two-thirds of users of mental health services. The most common type of treatment obtained by adults was prescription medication, followed by outpatient treatment. Nearly 15.5 million women used prescription medication for treatment of a mental or emotional condition. While this is still twice the number of men (7.1 million) who received similar treatment, it represents a 1 million decline from 2003, when 16.5 million adult women used prescription medication for treatment of a mental or emotional condition.

Mental health services are needed, but not received, by millions of adults in this country. Those with serious psychological distress are in particular need of services. In 2004, of the 13.4 million women aged 18 or older who reported having serious psychological distress in the past year, nearly one-half (6.4 million women) said they did not receive any type of mental health treatment or counseling. When asked to define their own perceived unmet need, cost was the reason most often cited for not receiving needed mental health treatment.

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Women's Health USA 2006 is not copyrighted. Readers are free to duplicate and use all or part of the information contained on this page. Suggested Citation: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Women's Health USA 2006. Rockville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2006.