As of 2018, 39 states allowed Medicaid billing for any type of peer support services, and a growing number of these reimburse peers for providing services addressing physical health needs. One quarter of mental health provider organizations report reimbursing peers for chronic disease self management, three in ten for integrated care services, and four in ten for diet and exercise counseling. Your organization’s ability to provide these whole health services will vary both on your state’s Medicaid regulations and also whether there are other sources of funding such as state block grants that can be used for this purpose.
For more information, please see National Analysis of Peer Support Providers: Practice Settings, Requirements, Roles and Reimbursement (University of Michigan Behavioral Health Workforce Research Center).