District of Columbia Medicaid behavioral health rates
District of Columbia Medicaid pays $35.74 for mental health counseling delivered by a licensed mental health clinician, effective June 1, 2025, the 3rd highest of 13 states with comparable rates. Below: 5 more behavioral health rates compared with every state we track, the wages of the staff who deliver them, and recent rate changes.
- Mental health counseling
- $35.74
- Rank among states
- 3 of 13+43.0% vs median
- Mental health counselor median wage
- $29.06BLS May 2025
- District of Columbia minimum wage
- $18.40
District of Columbia behavioral health rates vs other states
Fee-for-service, like-for-like by provider level. Click a rate to open District of Columbia's official fee schedule.
| Service | Provider level | Code | DC rate | Unit | Per hour | Rank | Median across states | Lowest | Highest | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mental health counseling | Licensed mental health clinician | H0046 | $35.74 | — | — | 3 of 13 | $25.00 | $0.45 | $42.50 | 13 |
| Outpatient psychotherapy and diagnostic evaluation | Licensed mental health clinician | 90838 | $100.28 | hour | $100.28 | — | $82.95 | $0.01 | $302.03 | 30 |
| Mental health assessment (non-physician) | Physician or licensed psychologist | H0031 | $295.78 | — | — | 4 of 29 | $124.50 | $9.66 | $687.46 | 29 |
| Skills training and development | Physician or licensed psychologist | H2014 | $27.60 | 15 min | $110.40 | 5 of 33 | $51.20/hr | $8.60 | $139.64 | 33 |
| Therapeutic behavioral services | Physician or licensed psychologist | Not published | $87.88/hr | $16.80 | $825.88 | 29 | ||||
| Mental health service plan development | Licensed mental health clinician | H0032 | $21.97 | — | — | 12 of 20 | $30.34 | $0.01 | $338.84 | 20 |
| Community-based wraparound services | Licensed mental health clinician | H2021 | $164.61 | — | — | — | $90.48/hr | $6.28 | $3,451.36 | 13 |
| Psychiatric residential treatment (daily) | All levels | Not published | $525.10/day | $283.19 | $1,244.07 | 15 | ||||
| Inpatient psychiatric stay (per day) | All levels | Not published | $965.41/day | $287.00 | $1,345.00 | 12 | ||||
Mental health counseling: where District of Columbia ranks
States whose published unit can't be converted are left out of the ranking.
| # | State | Rate | Unit | Per hour | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Dakota | $42.50 | — | — | 2026-06-01 |
| 2 | Wyoming | $42.34 | — | — | 2026-07-01 |
| 3 | District of Columbia | $35.74 | — | — | 2025-06-01 |
| 4 | Washington | $28.05 | — | — | 2021-01-01 |
| 5 | Wisconsin | $27.43 | — | — | 2022-01-01 |
| 6 | New Hampshire | $27.38 | — | — | 2023-07-01 |
| 7 | Rhode Island | $25.00 | — | — | 2013-03-25 |
| 8 | Massachusetts | $22.95 | — | — | 2025-09-01 |
| 9 | Ohio | $21.21 | — | — | 2020-06-12 |
| 10 | Connecticut | $21.14 | — | — | 2026-01-01 |
| 11 | North Carolina | $18.49 | — | — | 2025-10-01 |
| 12 | Michigan | $8.62 | — | — | 2018-01-01 |
| 13 | Minnesota | $0.45 | — | — | 2024-01-01 |
What it costs to deliver in District of Columbia
Median hourly wages from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025).
| Role | DC median | US median | vs US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental health counselor | $29.06 | $28.53 | +1.9% |
| Mental health social worker | $35.25 | $28.98 | +21.6% |
| Clinical psychologist | $51.44 | $48.36 | +6.4% |
| Psychiatrist | $88.02 | $135.51 | -35.0% |
| Nurse practitioner | $65.33 | $63.61 | +2.7% |
| Psychiatric technician | $32.42 | $21.70 | +49.4% |
Recent District of Columbia behavioral health rate changes
The workspace adds every modifier, region and provider variant, full rate history, proposed changes, coverage and prior-authorization rules, managed-care plans and a unit-economics calculator. All of it is available through the API.
Rates are taken from District of Columbia's official Medicaid publications, and each one links to its source. Confirm with the payer before billing. Managed-care plans may pay differently from fee-for-service.