Washington Medicaid behavioral health rates
Washington Medicaid pays $28.05 for mental health counseling delivered by a licensed mental health clinician, effective January 1, 2021, the 3rd highest of 12 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
- $28.05
- Rank among states
- 3 of 12+17.0% vs median
- Mental health counselor median wage
- $33.13BLS May 2025
- Washington minimum wage
- $17.13$17.73 from January 1, 2027
Washington behavioral health rates vs other states
Fee-for-service, like-for-like by provider level. Click a rate to open Washington's official fee schedule.
| Service | Provider level | Code | WA rate | Unit | Per hour | Rank | Median across states | Lowest | Highest | States |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mental health counseling | Licensed mental health clinician | H0046 | $28.05 | — | — | 3 of 12 | $23.98 | $0.45 | $42.50 | 12 |
| Outpatient psychotherapy and diagnostic evaluation | Licensed mental health clinician | 90846 | $76.89 | — | — | 21 of 29 | $82.90 | $0.01 | $302.03 | 29 |
| Mental health assessment (non-physician) | Physician or licensed psychologist | H0031 | $156.65 | — | — | 8 of 28 | $120.34 | $9.66 | $687.46 | 28 |
| Skills training and development | Physician or licensed psychologist | H2014 | $14.49 | 15 min | $57.96 | 11 of 31 | $49.08/hr | $8.60 | $139.64 | 31 |
| Therapeutic behavioral services | Physician or licensed psychologist | H2019 | $36.35 | 15 min | $145.40 | 4 of 28 | $88.56/hr | $16.80 | $825.88 | 28 |
| Mental health service plan development | Licensed mental health clinician | Not published | $31.25 | $0.01 | $338.84 | 19 | ||||
| Community-based wraparound services | Licensed mental health clinician | Not published | $94.50/hr | $6.28 | $3,451.36 | 12 | ||||
| Psychiatric residential treatment (daily) | All levels | Not published | $525.10/day | $283.19 | $1,244.07 | 15 | ||||
| Inpatient psychiatric stay (per day) | All levels | $1,089.65 | day | — | 4 of 11 | $965.06/day | $287.00 | $1,345.00 | 11 | |
Mental health counseling: where Washington 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 | Washington | $28.05 | — | — | 2021-01-01 |
| 4 | Wisconsin | $27.43 | — | — | 2022-01-01 |
| 5 | New Hampshire | $27.38 | — | — | 2023-07-01 |
| 6 | Rhode Island | $25.00 | — | — | 2013-03-25 |
| 7 | Massachusetts | $22.95 | — | — | 2025-09-01 |
| 8 | Ohio | $21.21 | — | — | 2020-06-12 |
| 9 | Connecticut | $21.14 | — | — | 2026-01-01 |
| 10 | North Carolina | $18.49 | — | — | 2025-10-01 |
| 11 | Michigan | $8.62 | — | — | 2018-01-01 |
| 12 | Minnesota | $0.45 | — | — | 2024-01-01 |
What it costs to deliver in Washington
Median hourly wages from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey (May 2025).
| Role | WA median | US median | vs US |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental health counselor | $33.13 | $28.53 | +16.1% |
| Mental health social worker | $33.88 | $28.98 | +16.9% |
| Clinical psychologist | $55.40 | $48.36 | +14.6% |
| Psychiatrist | $146.60 | $135.51 | +8.2% |
| Nurse practitioner | $75.05 | $63.61 | +18.0% |
| Psychiatric technician | $25.23 | $21.70 | +16.3% |
Recent Washington 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 Washington'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.