Having a child with behavioral health spending associated with high and extreme family financial burden<\/p>\n<\/h3>\n
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter<\/b>
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THURSDAY, Dec. 18, 2025 (HealthDay News) — The proportion of pediatric care expenditures for behavioral health increased from 22.4 to 40.2 percent from 2011 to 2022, according to a study published online Dec. 15 in JAMA Pediatrics<\/em>.<\/p>\n Ashley A. Foster, M.D., from the University of California, San Francisco, and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study of U.S. children aged 6 to 17 years using the 2011 to 2022 Medical Expenditure Panel Survey household component files to quantify U.S. pediatric behavioral health care expenditures.<\/p>\n The researchers found that pediatric behavioral health care expenditures totaled $41.8 billion in 2022. From 2011 to 2022, the proportion of pediatric care expenditures for behavioral health increased from 22.4 to 40.2 percent. There was a simultaneous increase in pediatric behavioral health out-of-pocket spending from $2.1 to $2.9 billion, representing an increase of 6.4 percent annually. For families with at least one child with behavioral health spending, 12.5 and 14.4 percent of out-of-pocket spending among families with high and extreme financial burden were for child behavioral health care. There was an association for having a child with behavioral health spending and high and extreme family financial burden (adjusted odds ratios, 1.60 and 1.42, respectively).<\/p>\n “Many U.S. families are experiencing high and extreme financial burden due to OOP [out-of-pocket] health care costs, and having a child with behavioral health expenditures independently increases a family’s risk of financial burden,” the authors write.<\/p>\n One author disclosed ties to Abbott Laboratories.<\/p>\n Abstract\/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)<\/a><\/p>\n