Montana saw 21 behavioral health providers added in the latest CMS NPI registry weekly update, representing 0% of the national total. This small volume of new registrations suggests a state with a relatively limited or slowly expanding behavioral health workforce, potentially indicating a challenging landscape for access to services.
Behavioral Health Credential Landscape
The data for Montana reveals no new BCBA or RBT credentials in this update. This absence is a significant finding for ABA clinic operators and highlights a potential gap in the state's specialized ABA workforce. Instead, the new individual providers primarily hold other behavioral health credentials, including 3 LCSW credentials, and one each for LCPC, MS, MD, SWLC, PCLC, NCC, LCPC, LAC, and MSW, LAC, SWLC. These represent a diverse mix of licensed clinical social workers, professional counselors, and medical doctors, indicating a broader mental health and counseling focus rather than specific ABA growth in this period.
Provider Demographics and Organizational Presence
Of the 21 total providers, 13 are individuals and 8 are organizations. Among the individual registrants, the workforce shows a strong female representation, with 11 individuals (85%) identifying as female. There is 1 male individual (8%) and 1 nonbinary individual (8%). No specific organizations appeared multiple times in this week's update.
The current data suggests that while Montana is adding behavioral health professionals, the lack of BCBA and RBT credentials in this update indicates that growth in the specialized ABA workforce may be stagnant or not reflected in these specific NPI registrations, potentially impacting ABA service availability for its residents.
