Kentucky Medicaid behavioral health rates
Kentucky Medicaid pays $34.44 per encounter for mental health counseling delivered by a licensed mental health clinician, effective January 1, 2020. Below: 6 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
- $34.44per encounter
- Rank among states
- —
- Mental health counselor median wage
- $26.05BLS May 2025
- Kentucky minimum wage
- $7.25
Kentucky behavioral health rates vs other states
Fee-for-service, like-for-like by provider level. Click a rate to open Kentucky's official fee schedule.
| Service | Provider level | Code | KY rate | Unit | Per hour | Rank | Median across states | Lowest | Highest | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mental health counseling | Licensed mental health clinician | H0046 | $34.44 | encounter | — | — | $21.21 | $0.45 | $28.05 | 9 |
| Outpatient psychotherapy and diagnostic evaluation | Licensed mental health clinician | 90834 | $80.58 | 45 min | — | — | $81.42 | $20.33 | $302.03 | 25 |
| Mental health assessment (non-physician) | Physician or licensed psychologist | H0031 | $107.44 | encounter | — | — | $117.85 | $9.66 | $687.46 | 24 |
| Skills training and development | Physician or licensed psychologist | Not published | $44.80/hr | $8.60 | $120.60 | 28 | ||||
| Therapeutic behavioral services | Physician or licensed psychologist | H2019 | $24.83 | 15 min | — | — | $85.46/hr | $16.80 | $825.88 | 26 |
| Mental health service plan development | Licensed mental health clinician | H0032 | $107.44 | encounter | — | — | $37.51 | $10.00 | $338.84 | 17 |
| Community-based wraparound services | Licensed mental health clinician | Not published | $98.52/hr | $6.28 | $3,451.36 | 11 | ||||
| Psychiatric residential treatment (daily) | All levels | $500.00 | day | — | 10 of 13 | $677.80/day | $283.19 | $1,244.07 | 13 | |
| Inpatient psychiatric stay (per day) | All levels | $1,234.28 | — | — | — | $951.97/day | $287.00 | $1,345.00 | 9 | |
Mental health counseling: where Kentucky ranks
States whose published unit can't be converted are left out of the ranking.
| # | State | Rate | Unit | Per hour | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Washington | $28.05 | — | — | 2021-01-01 |
| 2 | Wisconsin | $27.43 | — | — | 2022-01-01 |
| 3 | New Hampshire | $27.38 | — | — | 2023-07-01 |
| 4 | Massachusetts | $22.95 | — | — | 2025-09-01 |
| 5 | Ohio | $21.21 | — | — | 2020-06-12 |
| 6 | Connecticut | $21.14 | — | — | 2026-01-01 |
| 7 | North Carolina | $18.49 | — | — | 2025-10-01 |
| 8 | Michigan | $8.62 | — | — | 2018-01-01 |
| 9 | Minnesota | $0.45 | — | — | 2024-01-01 |
What it costs to deliver in Kentucky
Median hourly wages from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025).
| Role | KY median | US median | vs US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental health counselor | $26.05 | $28.53 | -8.7% |
| Mental health social worker | $20.46 | $28.98 | -29.4% |
| Clinical psychologist | $47.66 | $48.36 | -1.4% |
| Psychiatrist | $114.31 | $135.51 | -15.6% |
| Nurse practitioner | $59.07 | $63.61 | -7.1% |
| Psychiatric technician | $19.41 | $21.70 | -10.6% |
Recent Kentucky behavioral health rate changes
| Change | Status | Change | Effective |
|---|---|---|---|
| DMS provider letter: Medicaid Budget Impact on Provider Reimbursement | enacted | -4.0% | 2026-08-01 |
| DMS provider letter: Medicaid Budget Impact on Provider Reimbursement: Update | reversed | -4.0% | — |
| SPA/directed payment: Clinic & Specialized Children's Services | approved_cms | — | — |
| SPA/directed payment: 1915(i) Waiver | approved_cms | — | 2025-07-01 |
| SPA/directed payment: 250004NursingFacility | approved_cms | — | 2025-07-01 |
| SPA/directed payment: 25005ValueBasedAgreement | approved_cms | — | 2025-07-01 |
| DMS provider letter: Psychoeducation Policy Update H2027 H0038 | effective | — | 2025-01-01 |
| DMS public notice: Mobile Crisis Public Notice 2024 | proposed | — | 2025-01-01 |
| DMS provider letter: Appendix K Supplemental Rate | effective | +29.3% | — |
| SPA/directed payment: Supplemental Needs | approved_cms | — | 2024-07-01 |
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 Kentucky'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.