In 2016, BuzzFeed published an investigative report that exposed widespread abuse within the psychiatric industry, specifically targeting Universal Health Services (UHS), one of the largest operators of behavioral health facilities in the U.S. The report uncovered disturbing practices, particularly the unnecessary hospitalization of patients for financial gain. UHS, which operates more than 200 behavioral health facilities, was found to have admitted individuals who didn’t need psychiatric care solely to secure payments from insurance companies and government programs. This practice was part of a larger business model prioritizing profits over patient care.
The Investigation’s Key Findings
The report revealed the following systematic abuses:
Patient Brokering: UHS, along with other facilities, engaged in “patient brokering,” admitting individuals who didn’t require psychiatric hospitalization due to financial incentives.
Targeting Vulnerable Individuals: Patients with private insurance or Medicaid were especially targeted, often being kept in the hospital unnecessarily or diagnosed with falsified conditions.
Deceptive Billing Practices: UHS was found to have manipulated diagnoses and billing codes to maximize profits.
Harmful Treatments: Many patients were subjected to psychiatric treatments they didn’t need, resulting in physical and emotional distress.
Legal and Industry Response
Following the BuzzFeed report, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) launched an investigation into UHS. This led to a $122 million settlement in 2017, which addressed fraudulent billing practices but failed to confront the broader issues of overmedication, unnecessary institutionalization, and patient abuse.
Whistleblowers within UHS, many of them members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), were instrumental in exposing these practices. While the whistleblowers received $6 million from the settlement, patients harmed by UHS’s misconduct received no direct compensation. Critics argued that the settlement’s focus on financial penalties did not ensure long-term reforms to protect patients.
Lack of Long-Term Patient Protections
Despite the large settlement, UHS was not required to implement meaningful changes to its patient practices. The systemic issues, including the industry’s profit-driven model and over-reliance on medication, remained unresolved. Patient protections and access to holistic, trauma-informed care continued to be inadequate.
While there has been increased scrutiny of the mental health industry, large providers like UHS still operate under a business model prioritizing profits over patient well-being. The psychiatric industry continues to use outdated methods, such as long-term medication, without addressing patients’ neurophysiological needs or offering trauma-informed approaches to healing.
SEIU’s Role and Criticism
The involvement of the SEIU in the whistleblower case has sparked controversy. Although the union played a crucial role in exposing UHS’s fraudulent practices, the settlement largely benefited the union and the government, not the patients harmed by unnecessary hospitalization. SEIU received $6 million as part of the settlement, while survivors received no direct compensation. This situation has led to criticism that survivors’ stories were leveraged for financial gain without addressing their trauma or providing justice.
The Current State of the Behavioral Health Industry
Since the BuzzFeed report, only minor improvements have been made in the behavioral health industry:
Long waiting lists for care persist.
Trauma-informed treatment remains inaccessible for many.
Many psychiatric institutions, like UHS, still rely heavily on outdated treatment models, including overmedication and inadequate patient care.
Despite growing awareness of the importance of holistic, trauma-informed care, psychiatric hospitals remain slow to adopt these approaches. Patients continue to fall victim to a system that is not designed to support their long-term recovery.
A Call for Systemic Change
The BuzzFeed investigation brought significant attention to the abuses within the behavioral health industry, but the response has been insufficient. Meaningful reform remains elusive, with the industry continuing to prioritize profits over people.
This systemic failure underscores the importance of understanding Interpersonal Neurobiology. By promoting compassionate, trauma-informed care and challenging harmful hierarchies within psychiatry and the medical system, we can build a path toward genuine healing. True change will come when we prioritize human connection and well-being over corporate profit.
This post includes content generated by ChatGPT, a language model developed by OpenAI. The AI-generated content has been reviewed and edited for accuracy and relevance.
