ED Visit Rates for Behavioral Health Conditions by Demographic Characteristics

Behavioral health includes both mental health conditions as well as substance use disorders. This chart displays emergency department (ED) visit rates due to behavioral health concerns for the 14-county Finger Lakes region in 2021-2023 by sex, race and ethnicity, and socioeconomic status. There are notable disparities in visit rates for the Black non-Latino population as well as for those who live in low socioeconomic status ZIP codes within the region. The visit rate for the former is approximately double that of the overall population, and the visit rate for the latter is more than tripled. Additionally, the percentage of behavioral health ED visits related to mental health conditions were higher across all demographics compared to the percentage of visits related to substance use disorders, but some populations had a smaller gap between the two than others: those who were male, Black non-Latino, and/or lived in low socioeconomic areas. These data allude to the need for simultaneously reducing stigma around behavioral health issues and increasing access to culturally relevant care and services. 

Methodology note: The SES index ranking was developed by Common Ground Health and calculated using a variety of socioeconomic indicators from the American Community Survey including average income, poverty rates, education levels, housing value, and homeownership. Each ZIP code is assigned a socioeconomic (SES) index ranking from 1 to 5. The lower SES ZIP codes tend to have lower average income, higher poverty rates, lower prevalence of college degrees, etc.