{"id":5094717,"date":"2025-09-02T13:02:36","date_gmt":"2025-09-02T17:02:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ctlatinonews.com\/?p=5094717"},"modified":"2025-09-02T13:02:36","modified_gmt":"2025-09-02T17:02:36","slug":"opinion-the-upcoming-closure-of-outpatient-behavioral-health-department-threatens-mental-health-parity-in-connecticut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/latinonewsnetwork.com\/ctln\/2025\/09\/02\/opinion-the-upcoming-closure-of-outpatient-behavioral-health-department-threatens-mental-health-parity-in-connecticut\/","title":{"rendered":"Opinion: Upcoming Closure of the Outpatient Behavioral Health Department Threatens Mental Health Parity in Connecticut"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

En Espa\u00f1ol<\/strong><\/mark><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On September 30, 2025, the Trinity Health of New England outpatient behavioral health departments  are scheduled to close its doors. For many, this may seem like a routine administrative shift. But for those of us living with medical complexities, disabilities, and limited access through Medicare and Medicaid, it marks the end of a lifeline.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My therapist at St. Francis is not just a provider\u2014she is a witness to my life. She celebrates milestones with me, like the development of my children beyond their medical complexities, and the quiet triumphs of my own healing. She holds space for the unimaginable: the disappearance of my autistic son, the electric shock treatment to my heart after the devastating loss of my mother and three matriarchs during the pandemic and much more. She doesn\u2019t flinch. She listens. She remembers. She reminds me that I am still here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That relationship is built over time, through trust, consistency and inclusively with telehealth access. But now, I am being told that even that sacred space is being taken away\u2014with no clear or equitable alternative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disrupting therapeutic relationships is not just inconvenient\u2014it\u2019s destabilizing. Especially for those of us whose default prescription is \u201cseek counseling,\u201d when specialists routinely admit they cannot address our \u201cunique\u201d patient-centered needs. Counseling becomes the one place where I am not asked to explain or justify my complexity\u2014it is simply honored.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This closure comes just weeks after Connecticut passes one of the strongest mental health parity laws in the country, mandating equal coverage for mental health and physical health services, imposing fines up to $625,000 for noncompliance, and requiring annual public reporting from insurers. Governor Lamont calls it a shift from \u201choping insurers do the right thing to holding them accountable when they don\u2019t.\u201d And yet, what good is parity on paper if the infrastructure to deliver care is being dismantled?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And still, I rise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a former gubernatorial appointee and Chair of the Council on Developmental Disabilities, NAMI CT President<\/a>, and the Keep the Promise Coalition Chair, I\u2019ve spent years creating opportunities for others \u2014building statewide and national allyship, advancing communication access, and pushing for person-centered systems change. I lead panels, author strategies, and stand in rooms where decisions are made. But I also stand in waiting rooms, advocating for my own care, knowing that leadership doesn\u2019t exempt me from systemic indifference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I learn to breathe through the chaos, to pause when the weight becomes unbearable, and to return to what makes me thrive: my family, my faith, and my fierce belief that equity is not optional. Even when the system fails me, I refuse to let it fail others.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We are living through a national mental health crisis, compounded by economic instability, housing insecurity, and systemic inequities. The most vulnerable\u2014those who are homeless, disabled, or medically complex\u2014are being left to fend for themselves or fall through the cracks. We are being rendered invisible. Again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It feels like 1999 all over again, when institutional closures and policy gaps left thousands without support. We say \u201cnever again.\u201d Yet here we are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If Connecticut truly believes in equity, inclusion, and mental health parity, then the September 30 closure must be a call to action. We need legislation that not only holds insurers accountable but also protects access to care, funds community-based behavioral health, and ensures continuity\u2014especially for those of us who cannot afford to be forgotten.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u00a1Gracias!\u201d to my therapist who ensured there was Nothing about us Without us. Your humanity will be sorely missed! It’s time for the \u201cfoodie capital of the world\u201d to prioritize being the Mental Health Capitol! Mental health care is not optional. It is essential.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Doris Maldonado Mendez is a member of the Connecticut Mirror\u2019s Community Editorial Board.<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cover Photo Credit:\u00a0Alex Green<\/a>\u00a0from\u00a0Pexels<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you have an idea for an Opinion-Editorial? We want to hear from you! Email us at info@LatinoNewsNetwork.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

En Espa\u00f1ol On September 30, 2025, the Trinity Health of New England outpatient behavioral health departments  are scheduled to close 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