FIVE. MENTAL ILLNESS IS JUST THAT. IT’S AN ILLNESS. IT’S NOT A MORAL FAILURE OR A CHARACTER FLAW, WHICH A LOT OF TIMES IT’S TREATED AS GETTING THE RIGHT CARE FOR. MENTAL HEALTH CONCERNS CAN BE A COMPLICATED PROCESS. FINDING THE RIGHT INSURANCE TO COVER THE COST IS AN ADDITIONAL STRUGGLE FOR FAMILIES. AND ALL THIS WEEK, WBAL, TV 11 NEWS INVESTIGATES IS LOOKING AT THE VARIOUS ISSUES THAT PEOPLE ARE FACING IN OUR SERIES COSTLY COVERAGE, HEALTH INSURANCE IN MARYLAND. DESPITE LAWS MANDATING THAT MENTAL HEALTH CARE BE AS AVAILABLE AS PHYSICAL CARE, FAMILIES FIND HELP EITHER OUT OF REACH OR TOO COSTLY TO AFFORD. IT’S CALLED GALLERY. WHEN I FIRST INTENDED TO MAKE IT, IT WAS A I WAS JUST THINKING ABOUT LIKE COMING OUT OF THE HOSPITAL AND THEN, YOU KNOW, JUST. I DON’T KNOW, I FEEL LIKE IN THE HOSPITAL, IT’S JUST ALWAYS YOU’RE BEING WATCHED. ARTIST FRIDA KAHLO SAID SHE DIDN’T PAINT DREAMS OR NIGHTMARES, RATHER HER OWN REALITY. IT’S KIND OF LIKE YOUR CAMERA, ACTUALLY. THE SAME CAN BE SAID OF 18 YEAR OLD REMY FROM SEVEN, WHOSE BRIGHTLY COLORED WORK DEPICTS HER DARKER REALITY. THIS LITHIUM RIGHT HERE, THAT’S LITHIUM. THIS IS LITHIUM RIGHT HERE. TEN HOSPITALIZATIONS SINCE THE AGE OF 14 FOR MAJOR DEPRESSION WITH PSYCHOTIC FEATURES. I ALWAYS FELT REALLY TRAPPED AND WATCHED. THESE DAYS, THANKFULLY, REMY IS STABLE. COME HERE, COME HERE. COME HERE. A RELIEF TO HER MOTHER, JOY, WHO LOST THE GOLD. STANDARD OF HEALTH INSURANCE WHEN SHE WAS LAID OFF FROM HER JOB AS A FEDERAL HEALTH CARE WORKER, A SECONDARY PLAN THROUGH REMY’S DAD JUST DOESN’T CUT IT. AND ANOTHER HOSPITALIZATION COULD BE DAUNTING. IT COULD FINANCIALLY BREAK US. WE WOULD. I MEAN, WE WOULD DEFINITELY HAVE TO GO THROUGH OUR SAVINGS. IT WOULD BE EXTREMELY STRESSFUL. REMY SAYS HER FAMILY IS NOT ALONE. I MEAN, I KNOW A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE OUT THERE. I MEAN, THEY’RE KEEPING ALL THEIR ISSUES TO THEMSELVES, PROBABLY BECAUSE THEY KNOW THAT IT WOULD SET THEM OR THEIR FAMILY BACK FINANCIALLY. REMY AND JOY TRY TO RAISE AWARENESS, NOT JUST ABOUT MENTAL ILLNESS, BUT THE FAILINGS OF INSURANCE. ACCORDING TO A RECENT REPORT, MARYLAND RESIDENTS WERE NEARLY 21 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO GO OUT OF NETWORK FOR INPATIENT BEHAVIORAL HEALTH TREATMENT COMPARED TO MEDICAL OR SURGICAL TREATMENT, A RATE THAT IS MORE THAN THREE TIMES THE NATIONAL AVERAGE. I SAW HOW DIFFERENTLY MENTAL ILLNESS IS TREATED VERSUS A PHYSICAL ILLNESS. MENTAL HEALTH CARE CAN BE UNAFFORDABLE EVEN IF YOU HAVE INSURANCE. THE PROBLEM, ACCORDING TO THE MENTAL HEALTH ASSOCIATION OF MARYLAND INSURANCE REIMBURSEMENTS, THE INSURANCE COMPANIES ARE NOT PAYING MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE USE PROVIDERS ENOUGH TO ENTICE THEM TO JOIN THEIR NETWORKS. AND THAT IS DELAYED. SO-CALLED PARITY, WHICH A 2008 FEDERAL LAW MANDATED. SO MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES WOULD BE AS ACCESSIBLE AS THOSE OF PHYSICAL HEALTH. WE’RE IN THE MIDST OF DOING A NUMBER OF INVESTIGATIONS ON MENTAL HEALTH PARITY AND COVERAGE IN AN EFFORT TO MAKE SURE THAT OUR HEALTH INSURERS ARE FOLLOWING THE LAW. THESE ARE SERVICES THAT FAMILIES DESPERATELY NEED. FOR NOW, JOY IS TRYING TO HELP OTHERS WHO ARE WALKING THIS JOURNEY. VOLUNTEERING WITH THE NATIONAL ALLIANCE ON MENTAL ILLNESS, AND BOTH JOY AND REMY ARE FEATURED IN A POWERFUL PODCAST, YOU, ME AND MY MENTAL ILLNESS. MENTAL ILLNESS IS JUST THAT. IT’S AN ILLNESS. IT’S NOT A MORAL FAILURE OR A CHARACTER FLAW, WHICH A LOT OF TIMES IT’S TREATED AS. REMY, WHO SAYS SHE IS NOT FULLY RECOVERED, CONTINUES TO FIND PURPOSE THROUGH HER ART. CANVASES THAT ARE NOT DREAMS OR NIGHTMARES, BUT REMY’S OWN REALITY. SHE’S BEEN THROUGH SO MUCH, AND I’LL TELL YOU, I THANK HER FOR HER HONESTY. SHE AND HER MOTHER. JOY. IT IS VERY HARD TO GO THROUGH WHAT THEY’VE BEEN THROUGH AND THEN TO GO ON TELEVISION AND SHARE THEIR JOURNEY TO TO TAKE THE STIGMA AWAY FROM MENTAL HEALTH. KUDOS AND THANK YOU TO THEM. AN EYE OPENING THREE TIMES THE NATIONAL AVERAGE. THREE TIMES NATIONALLY COULD BREAK SOMEBODY. I DID HEALTH CARE. I WAS NOT AWARE OF THAT. I WAS NOT, AND THEY’RE CONTINUING TO INVESTIGATE TO MAKE SURE THAT THESE INSURANCE COMPANIES IN MARYLAND ARE DOING WHAT THEY NEED TO DO. SO WE WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW THERE ARE RESOURCES IF YOU NEED TO REACH OUT FOR HELP, INCLUDING NINE, EIGHT, EIGHT. AND WE HAVE SEVERAL OTHER NUMBERS AND WEBSITES YOU CAN USE AND FIND ON THE WBAL-TV APP. GREAT PIECE. ALSO ON THE APP YOU CAN FIND RESOURCES ON HOW TO APPEAL IF AN INSURANCE CLAIM IS DENIED, AS WELL AS NAVIGATE FINDING
Impossible to afford: Raising awareness about insurance failings when treating mental illness
‘I always felt trapped’: Mother, daughter seek to expose how differently mental, physical illnesses are covered
Updated: 5:37 PM EST Nov 6, 2025
Despite laws mandating mental health care be as available as physical care, some Maryland families are finding help either out of reach or too costly to afford.Getting the right care for mental health concerns can be a complicated process, and finding the right insurance to cover the cost is an additional struggle. WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates shares a Maryland family’s experience.’It could financially break us’Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, who is remembered for self-portraits, said she didn’t paint dreams or nightmares, but rather, her own reality.The same can be said of 18-year-old Remy from Severn, whose brightly colored work depicts her darker reality of 10 hospitalizations since the age of 14 for major depression with psychotic features.”I always felt very trapped and watched,” Remy told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates.These days, thankfully, Remy is stable, which is a relief to her mother, Joy Binion, who lost the gold standard of health insurance when she was laid off from her job as a federal health care worker. A secondary plan through Remy’s father just doesn’t cut it, and another hospitalization could be daunting.”It could financially break us. We would have to go through savings. It would be extremely stressful,” Binion told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates.Remy said her family is not alone: “I know a lot of people who are out there keeping their issues to themselves, probably because they know it would send them or their family back financially.”The mother and daughter try to raise awareness — not just about mental illness, but the failings of insurance.Report: Marylanders more likely to leave network for behavioral health careAccording to a recent report by RTI International, Maryland residents were nearly 21 times more likely to go out of network for inpatient behavioral health treatment compared to medical or surgical treatment, a rate that is more than three times the national average.”I saw how differently mental illness is treated versus a physical illness,” Binion said.Dan Martin, the senior director of public policy at the Mental Health Association of Maryland, told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigate that the problem is insurance reimbursements.”Mental health care can be unaffordable, even if you have insurance,” Martin said. “The insurance companies are not paying mental health and substance use providers enough to entice them to join their networks.”That has delayed so-called parity, which a 2008 federal law mandated so that mental health services would be as accessible as those of physical health care.”We’re in the midst of doing a number of investigations on mental health parity and coverage in an effort to make sure our health insurers are following the law,” Maryland Insurance Commissioner Marie Grant told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates. “These are services that families desperately need.”For now, Binion is trying to help others who are walking this journey by volunteering with the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Both she and Remy are featured in NAMI Maryland’s powerful podcast, “You, me and my mental illness.””Mental illness is just that, an illness. It’s not a moral failure or a character flaw, which, a lot of times, it’s treated as,” Binion told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates.Remy, who said she is not fully recovered, continues to find purpose through her art, canvases that are not dreams or nightmares, but Remy’s own reality.211 Maryland: Maryland’s Helpline, Call 211 press 1, is free and confidential, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. It provides information services for individuals and family members facing mental illness and/or substance abuse.Officials from Baltimore City and three surrounding counties are joining forces with organizations as regional response teams to facilitate the new 988 helpline. Call 988 for more information (Story) National Suicide Prevention Lifeline — Call 800-273-8255Text “HOME” to 741741 for help via the Crisis Text LineMaryland Psychiatric Society — Use “find a psychiatrist” to access the database and search by patient type, county and area of interest.Maryland Public Mental Health System — Provides inpatient and outpatient mental health services for individuals with mental health illness for those with Medicaid and for others. Because of the severity of their illness and their financial need, some services within the benefits package may be available. There may be a small fee or co-pay required for individuals non-eligible for Medicaid.Black Mental Health Alliance-BaltimoreMentalHealth.gov — Information on a variety of mental health topics and resources.Pro Bono Counseling ProjectAmerican Academy of Pediatric Psychiatry — Information for families and childrenAmerican Psychiatric AssociationNIH: COVID-19 — “Do I Need Help?”NIH: Coping with COVID-19 and mental healthFamily Aware: Resources for LGBTQIA+ PeopleADHD resourcesNCAA: College athlete mental healthNIH: Tips for talking with a health care provider about your mental health211 Maryland: 211 Health CheckMorgan’s Message: Supporting student-athletes at colleges, high schools across the countryBullying: Stop Bullying on the SpotEating Disorders: National Eating Disorders Association Helpline — 800-931-2237Thriveworks offers in-network counseling services with diverse and expert clinicians online or in-person at 13 locations across Maryland, including five in Baltimore.Help 4 MomsThe phone number for the National Maternal Mental Health Hot Line is 833-9-HELP4MOMS. You can call or text that number 24/7. It is free and confidential.Peer SupportOn Our Own of Maryland: Wellness and Recovery Organizations
SEVERN, Md. —
Despite laws mandating mental health care be as available as physical care, some Maryland families are finding help either out of reach or too costly to afford.
Getting the right care for mental health concerns can be a complicated process, and finding the right insurance to cover the cost is an additional struggle. WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates shares a Maryland family’s experience.
‘It could financially break us’
Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, who is remembered for self-portraits, said she didn’t paint dreams or nightmares, but rather, her own reality.
The same can be said of 18-year-old Remy from Severn, whose brightly colored work depicts her darker reality of 10 hospitalizations since the age of 14 for major depression with psychotic features.
“I always felt very trapped and watched,” Remy told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates.
These days, thankfully, Remy is stable, which is a relief to her mother, Joy Binion, who lost the gold standard of health insurance when she was laid off from her job as a federal health care worker. A secondary plan through Remy’s father just doesn’t cut it, and another hospitalization could be daunting.
“It could financially break us. We would have to go through savings. It would be extremely stressful,” Binion told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates.
Remy said her family is not alone: “I know a lot of people who are out there keeping their issues to themselves, probably because they know it would send them or their family back financially.”
The mother and daughter try to raise awareness — not just about mental illness, but the failings of insurance.
Report: Marylanders more likely to leave network for behavioral health care
According to a recent report by RTI International, Maryland residents were nearly 21 times more likely to go out of network for inpatient behavioral health treatment compared to medical or surgical treatment, a rate that is more than three times the national average.
“I saw how differently mental illness is treated versus a physical illness,” Binion said.
Dan Martin, the senior director of public policy at the Mental Health Association of Maryland, told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigate that the problem is insurance reimbursements.
“Mental health care can be unaffordable, even if you have insurance,” Martin said. “The insurance companies are not paying mental health and substance use providers enough to entice them to join their networks.”
“Mental health care can be unaffordable, even if you have insurance.”
That has delayed so-called parity, which a 2008 federal law mandated so that mental health services would be as accessible as those of physical health care.
“We’re in the midst of doing a number of investigations on mental health parity and coverage in an effort to make sure our health insurers are following the law,” Maryland Insurance Commissioner Marie Grant told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates. “These are services that families desperately need.”
For now, Binion is trying to help others who are walking this journey by volunteering with the National Alliance on Mental Illness. Both she and Remy are featured in NAMI Maryland’s powerful podcast, “You, me and my mental illness.”
“Mental illness is just that, an illness. It’s not a moral failure or a character flaw, which, a lot of times, it’s treated as,” Binion told WBAL-TV 11 News Investigates.
Remy, who said she is not fully recovered, continues to find purpose through her art, canvases that are not dreams or nightmares, but Remy’s own reality.
Officials from Baltimore City and three surrounding counties are joining forces with organizations as regional response teams to facilitate the new 988 helpline. Call 988 for more information (Story) Maryland Public Mental Health System — Provides inpatient and outpatient mental health services for individuals with mental health illness for those with Medicaid and for others. Because of the severity of their illness and their financial need, some services within the benefits package may be available. There may be a small fee or co-pay required for individuals non-eligible for Medicaid.MentalHealth.gov — Information on a variety of mental health topics and resources.Morgan’s Message: Supporting student-athletes at colleges, high schools across the countryThriveworks offers in-network counseling services with diverse and expert clinicians online or in-person at 13 locations across Maryland, including five in Baltimore.Help 4 Moms
The phone number for the National Maternal Mental Health Hot Line is 833-9-HELP4MOMS. You can call or text that number 24/7. It is free and confidential.
Peer Support