Your (Unofficial) Guide to State-Sponsored Therapy in Ohio

There’s a way to get affordable mental health care that you might not know about. That’s Ohio’s public mental health system.

If you qualify, you can get mental health care at a state-sponsored agency for a small co-pay or a low sliding-scale fee. But even if you don’t qualify for services at a state-funded provider, Ohio’s system can still give you information, referrals to affordable local programs, and other essential help for free.

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If you’re in a hurry and want to get the most important information about what’s available in the Ohio mental health system and who it’s for, you can read our quick start guide below.

To learn more about public mental health services in Ohio, keep reading. We’ve done the research to uncover essential facts about who’s eligible, what services you can get, when to go, where to call, and how it works so you can decide if Ohio’s mental health system might be right for you.

Who Is Eligible?

The Ohio public mental health system can help with a wide range of mental health needs, but you should especially consider looking into it if you (or a loved one) are having a mental health crisis, have a severe mental health condition, have Medicaid, or have a limited income.

Everyone in Ohio can use the state-funded mental health emergency response system. If you or someone you love is in crisis, you can call a state or local crisis line to get the help you need, quickly.

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Public mental health services are usually the best option if you’re having a mental health crisis and need help right away.

State mental health programs are required to provide mental health crisis response services and are one of the fastest ways to get care when you’re having a mental health emergency.

The people who answer state and local crisis lines can provide caring attention and support as they help you determine the best response to a crisis, whether it’s inpatient treatment or an appointment with a counselor.

Even if you’re not in crisis, you can call your local mental health hotline for information about affordable mental health services in your area. When you call, you can find out whether you might qualify for state-funded mental health services, schedule an assessment or intake appointment, or get free information about other affordable local providers.

While there are some services in the Ohio public mental health system that have stricter eligibility requirements than others, in general, Ohio’s public mental health system is pretty accessible. There are no statewide eligibility criteria for public outpatient mental health services in Ohio.

Because Ohio mental health boards contract with independent local agencies instead of directly providing services, eligibility requirements vary from county to county and program to program. Which services you can get also varies depending on where you’re looking. Some programs focus on services for people with serious mental illness, while others serve clients with milder conditions or issues.

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You don’t have to have a serious mental illness (SMI) to get services from publicly-funded outpatient programs in Ohio, but some services and programs focus on people who have SMI. In addition, when demand is high or staffing is low, people with SMI are given priority admission at some programs.

So, what is SMI? Serious mental illness is usually defined as a condition that causes you severe distress, limits your ability to function, makes it hard for you to live independently without support, or puts you at risk of hospitalization. Conditions that can qualify as SMI include schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression.

One of the most important requirements you need to meet to get services at a state-funded program in Ohio is to be a resident of the county or region it serves.

It’s a great option if you’re a local resident with a public insurance plan. Most programs in the Ohio public system accept Medicaid, and it can be hard to find other providers who do. Many also accept Medicare and a range of private and commercial insurance plans.

If you don’t have insurance, or your insurance doesn’t have good mental health coverage, most publicly-funded programs in Ohio also allow you to pay for services out of pocket. Most have sliding scales and base what you pay on your income.

Ohio’s multifaceted system includes small private counseling practices as well as large non-profits and comprehensive for-profit companies. Some programs focus only on therapy and counseling, while others focus on specialty and intensive services for people with serious mental illness. Some comprehensive programs offer both.

Look through the local programs that serve your county to find the right one for you. Many counties include specialized providers as well as programs that can meet the needs of many people, including people with moderate mental health issues who want to work with a therapist. You can find your area’s programs in the directory section of this article.

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Publicly-funded mental health programs in Ohio are great places to find specialized and intensive mental health services like case management and day treatment that can be hard to find anywhere else. These specialty programs can give you extra help when you’re dealing with severe symptoms.

In Ohio, local agencies called ADAMH (Alcohol, Drug Addiction, and Mental Health) boards oversee local provider networks for the public system. They don’t determine whether you’re eligible for services at any given program, but they do determine whether you qualify for state financial assistance.

In many cases, if you don’t qualify for public funds, you can still access counseling and other community mental health services. Your ADAMH board will refer you to a local program for further assessment after they determine your eligibility for state funding assistance. That program will then help you figure out if you’re eligible and what your payment options are.

Many contracted providers in the Ohio system accept private insurance plans and offer sliding scale fees if you don’t have insurance and don’t qualify for Medicaid or other state mental health funding. If you’re not sure what you qualify for, reach out to your local ADAMH board. You can also check if you’re eligible for Medicaid online.

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Medicaid is a great way to access the public mental health system in Ohio. Not only do most programs in the public system accept it, but you can also use it to get services from many other programs and private practitioners.

Ohio accepted federal Medicaid expansion in 2014, so you’re eligible for Medicaid if your income is 138 percent of the federal poverty level or less. You may also qualify based on a combination of your income, your medical history, and your mental health condition.

If you’re not sure whether you’re eligible, it’s worth looking into. You can apply for Medicaid in person, by phone, or online. To learn more, you can go to a Department of Job and Family Services office or fill out an online application on the Ohio Access Benefits page or Healthcare.gov.

You can call a local agency directly to learn more about what services they offer, whether you’re eligible, and whether there’s a waitlist. You can find the numbers for local programs in the directory below.

We encourage you to call even if you’re not sure whether you’re eligible or whether you’ve found the right program. Even if you don’t meet the program’s requirements or they don’t offer the service you want, they can probably still help you.

People who work at state-funded agencies are knowledgeable about local resources and will often give you free information or even referrals to other affordable providers nearby, including local non-profits that provide free or low-cost counseling.

Where Do You Call to Get Started?

The easiest way to learn more about state-funded mental health services in Ohio is to call your local program directly. You can find contact information for local state-funded programs, as well as the numbers for local crisis and information lines, in the directory in the next section.

There are also many numbers you can call for help no matter where you are in Ohio. You can find the numbers for statewide helplines and hotlines in the information box directly below.

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The statewide Ohio mental health crisis hotline is 988.

The Crisis Text Line for the state of Ohio is 741741.

For emotional support and help finding care, you can call the Ohio CareLine at (800) 720-9616.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Helpline is 1-800-950-NAMI (6264).

You can reach the non-emergency NAMI Ohio Helpline by calling (800) 686-2646 or (614) 224-2700.

If you just need to talk to someone, you can call the Nord Center Warm Line at (800) 888-6161 from 1pm to 10pm Monday through Friday.

You can call the P.E.E.R. Center Warmline at (614) 358-8255 for peer support from 5PM to 3PM daily.

The Cincinnati Warmline is available 24/7 to all Ohio residents and can be reached at (513) 931-9276.

You can reach the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services at (614) 466-2596.

Public mental health services in Ohio are managed on the state level by the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services. For general information about Ohio’s mental health system, you can call them at (614) 466-2596.

However, you’ll probably get the best results by calling the program you’re interested in directly. You can find information about services available in your county in the directory below.

Ohio Mental Health Directory

Public outpatient mental health services in Ohio are provided by a variety of private agencies that contract with local mental health boards.

The local agencies that govern Ohio’s public behavioral health programs are called Alcohol, Drug Addiction, and Mental Health Boards. Some ADAMH boards serve a single county, while some serve several counties. There are 50 ADAMH boards for Ohio’s 88 counties.

Each ADAMH board has a general number you can call for information as well as a crisis line you can call to get help in a crisis. In the directory below, you can find your local ADAMH board’s number, your local crisis line, and a list of programs that contract with your board to provide outpatient mental health services to people in your area.

If you need information after hours or aren’t sure whether you’re experiencing a mental health crisis, it’s okay to call a crisis line for help. The staff who answer are trained to quickly figure out what you need and can tell you what steps you need to take to connect with the right services.

Also Consider: Federally Qualified Health Centers

Federally qualified health centers (FQHCs) are another great way to get affordable publicly-funded mental health services in Ohio.

These federally-funded programs provide cutting-edge care in places where good primary healthcare was once hard to find. Most provide integrated care so you can get primary medical and mental health services at the same location. Each FQHC accepts Medicaid and Medicare and offers low sliding-scale fees if you don’t have insurance.

You can search for FQHCs near you by using the online search tool on the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration website.

Troubleshooting Guide

The state mental health system is complicated and can be confusing to navigate. If you’re having any issues, we’re here to help. Here are some of our solutions to common problems you might experience.

If you’ve run into a problem that we haven’t addressed, don’t give up. Call someone at the program (or a state or local mental health hotline) and tell them what’s going on.

You’re much more likely to get the help you need when you advocate for yourself and are persistent. Tell the person you talk to what you need or what problem you’re having.

If they don’t help the first time, call them back and tell them. If you keep calling and keep calm and focused, you should eventually get through to someone who can help you.

Deep Dive: How Does the System Work?

To understand Ohio’s mental health system, it helps to understand how it started and how it’s changed since then.

Public mental health services have been around for a surprisingly long time. But for over a hundred years in America, the only way to get them was in a psychiatric hospital.

In the 1960s, Americans started thinking differently about mental health care. Conditions in psychiatric hospitals were getting worse and new medications made it possible to provide mental health treatment on an outpatient basis.

In response, new laws were passed that required state and local governments to establish community mental health programs as alternatives to institutionalization for people with serious mental illness. The most important was the Community Mental Health Act, which President John F. Kennedy signed into law in 1963.

DEEP DIVE

To learn more about what the public mental health system was like in the early days—and how psychiatric inpatient care has evolved since then—you can read our article “Do Insane Asylums Still Exist? The Surprising Past and Present.”

To learn more about what inpatient mental health treatment is like now, and the differences between how it works in general hospitals and specialized psychiatric facilities, you can read our article “How Inpatient Mental Health Treatment Works.”

Many state mental health programs trace their origins back to the 1960s when these important changes started to happen. Ohio is no exception.

After Congress passed the Community Mental Health Act in 1963, the Ohio legislature passed its own community mental health law in 1967.

It required state and local governments to establish a network of community-based mental health services, and it accomplished that goal through the establishment of 53 regional mental health boards. By 1974, community mental health programs had been established in many counties across Ohio.

New laws passed in the 1980s increased funding for community mental health programs in Ohio and helped them grow at a faster rate. From 1986 to 1990, Ohio moved from 23rd to 4th place in Public Citizen and NAMI rankings for public mental health services.

However, from 2009 to 2011, Ohio made significant funding cuts to mental health care that forced some programs to close or merge and that otherwise limited access to services.

DEEP DIVE

Ohio governs its mental health system at the state level but implements it at the local level. On the state level, the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services manages state mental health policy, funding, and planning. It also runs Ohio’s six state psychiatric hospitals.

The agencies that oversee Ohio’s behavioral health programs on the local level are called Alcohol, Drug Addiction, and Mental Health (ADAMH) Boards. Some ADAMH boards serve a single county, while some serve several counties. There are 50 ADAMH boards for Ohio’s 88 counties.

The main role of Ohio’s ADAMH boards is to make sure Ohioans have access to mental health services. Most mental health boards do not directly provide mental health services, but contract with local behavioral healthcare providers. Mental health boards fund, manage, and license local programs to provide services to local residents, especially those who need state assistance to access services.

In the 2010s, reduced state funding for mental health in Ohio, as well as statewide staff shortages, caused problems including longer wait times for care and increasing demands on law enforcement agencies to transport patients in crisis.

Fortunately, the state has taken action to address these issues. Ohio launched the statewide 988 mental health crisis line in July 2022 and has increased mental health funding to support workforce development and the expansion of crisis services. Agencies across the state are building new crisis stabilization units and behavioral health urgent care clinics. They are also expanding mobile crisis response teams.

You can use these new resources to get the care you need. If you’re in crisis or not sure where to go, you can start by calling 988 or a local crisis line—the people who answer know how the system works and will help you get where you need to go.

Conclusion

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, only 48 percent of people in Ohio who have mental health conditions get treatment for them. Many of them qualify for public mental health services but don’t know about them.

You can make a difference by reaching out and connecting with local mental health resources to get the care you need. If you’re not sure whether you qualify for Ohio state mental health services, call your local program or a state or local hotline. You may find out you can get mental health services at a state-funded program or that there’s another affordable option nearby.

The most important thing is to get started—the help you need may be only a call or click away.

Are You Thinking of Online Therapy? Start Here to Get Matched with a Licensed Therapist Right For You.

Therapy with No Waiting Rooms or Driving. Take a quick quiz about your preferences and needs and get matched to a therapist in as little as 48 hours.

Your (Unofficial) Guide to State-Sponsored Therapy in Ohio

Are You Thinking of Online Therapy? Start Here to Get Matched with a Licensed Therapist Right For You.

Have you been in therapy before?

Quick Start Guide

Who Is Eligible?

PRO TIP

Use the State System When You're in Crisis

PRO TIP

What Is Serious Mental Illness?

PRO TIP

Check Out the State System If You Need Specialized Services

PRO TIP

Check If You're Eligible for Medicaid

Where Do You Call to Get Started?

PRO TIP

Important Numbers in Ohio

Ohio Mental Health Directory

Ohio Clinics and Crisis Lines

Northwest Ohio Clinics and Crisis Lines

Northeast Ohio Clinics and Crisis Lines

Central Ohio Clinics and Crisis Lines

Southwest Ohio Clinics and Crisis Lines

Southeast Ohio Clinics and Crisis Lines

Also Consider: Federally Qualified Health Centers

Troubleshooting Guide

Problems and Solutions

Deep Dive: How Does the System Work?

DEEP DIVE

For More Information

DEEP DIVE

What Is the Structure of the Ohio Mental Health System?

Conclusion

Are You Thinking of Online Therapy? Start Here to Get Matched with a Licensed Therapist Right For You.

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