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Most Americans haven't faced barriers to behavioral health care

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Most Americans (62%) report facing none of these barriers to behavioral health care in the past twelve months, or not having sought such services, according to a March 2026 Verasight survey. The most-cited obstacle, named by 26%, is cost, thin insurance coverage, or long waits for an appointment.

Fewer point to distance or transportation and to distrust or stigma (10% each), a lack of nearby providers (7%), limited telehealth or internet access and a shortage of culturally appropriate care (5% each), or a lack of housing or child care (3%).

Topline

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Selected responses

Most Americans haven't faced barriers to behavioral health care.

In the past 12 months, which of the following factors prevented you or someone in your household from seeking behavioral health services (mental health or substance use treatment)?

  • None of the above / Have not sought out behavioral health services 62.0%
  • Cost, lack of insurance coverage, or long wait times for an appointment 26.0%
  • Distance or transportation to a provider 9.9%
  • Distrust of the healthcare system or stigma from my community 9.5%
  • No providers or clinics available in my area 7.0%
  • Limited telehealth access or internet connectivity 5.3%
  • Lack of culturally appropriate care 5.0%
  • Lack of housing or child care 3.4%

2026 · base n 1,000 · +/- 3.6%

Module 4: Identity, Politics, & Social Trust

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Methodology

Full methodology
Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting
Field dates
2026-03-06 → 2026-03-16
Base (unweighted)
1,000
Margin of error
+/- 3.6%
Module
Module 4: Identity, Politics, & Social Trust

Source

Citation

Verasight Client Omnibus Survey #2026-044, fielded March 6-16, 2026, N=1,000 US adults age 18+, +/- 3.6%.

https://reports.verasight.io/r/omnibus-2026-044#q-4-23

Verasight survey methodology

How Verasight conducts surveys.

This page describes the Verasight general survey contract, separate from how the Data Library packages it. When a wave report is published, its field dates, sample sizes, and module breakdown are listed in that report.

Mode
Verasight panel recruited via random address-based sampling, random person-to-person text messaging, and dynamic online targeting.
Population
US adults age 18+.
Sample design
Surveys are run as omnibus or single-topic waves. Omnibus waves are split into modules with their own respondent set, typically around one thousand respondents per module.
Field window
Each wave specifies its own field dates. Most omnibus waves field across roughly two weeks.
Weighting
Per-module weighting to CPS targets including age, race and ethnicity, sex, income, education, region, and metropolitan status.
Partisanship benchmark
Pew Research Center's NPORS benchmarking surveys, three-year running average.
Vote benchmark
2024 presidential vote population benchmarks.
Margin of error
Typically about plus or minus 3.4 to 3.6 percent per module at standard module sizes. Question-level MoE is recomputed when a base shrinks materially below the module baseline.
Reporting
The canonical report hub is reports.verasight.io. Verified legacy reports remain on their original hosts, and unpublished reports are marked pending.
Transparency
Verasight is a member of the American Association for Public Opinion Research Transparency Initiative.

The canonical report hub is reports.verasight.io; older reports may remain on verified legacy hosts.