The Mental and Behavioral Health Registry: Five things to know

By Communications Staff

The Mental & Behavioral Health Registry (MBHR) — the online database developed by psychologists especially for psychologists and other behavioral health practitioners — is now live and ready to use.

Last year, the Practice Organization and an advisory committee of outcome measurement experts began developing a qualified clinical data registry for psychologists and other behavioral health professionals to use. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has encouraged health care professional organizations to create these registries to collect and organize data on patient outcomes. After several meetings of the advisory committee, the Mental and Behavioral Health Registry (MBHR) is now available to psychologists and other behavioral health providers. Here’s what you need to know about this new valuable practice tool.

• MBHR is an electronic platform that lets you track patient data, see whether your patients are improving or getting worse and compare your data with that of other providers. Other health care professions use something similar to track and share their patient outcomes.
• The registry contains more than 30 process and outcome measures for a range of mental health conditions, including two additional measures of anxiety. The MBHR is the only clinical data registry with anxiety measures.
• The new registry is already approved by CMS, which means providers will be able to use the registry to meet the quality reporting requirements under Medicare's Merit-based Payment System. The registry can also be used to meet reporting requirements for other value-based payment programs.
• Using the registry to track your patient's progress can help you grow your practice. Some providers share outcome data that they report on their website to attract new patients and show that the interventions they’re using for certain conditions are working.
• Visit the MBHR website to sign up and use the registry.

Have additional questions about the registry? Send an email. You can also learn more about the registry and its impact on psychologists’ reimbursement rates by visiting APA Practice Central.