CareGap as a Public Health Tool
CareGap is built to address a measurable public health challenge: uneven access to mental health care. Here's how it fits into a public health framework.
The problem
Many people live in areas with mental health provider shortages, and even when resources exist, they may not know where to start. The result is delayed care, untreated conditions, and avoidable crises — concentrated in communities that already face the most barriers.
The intervention
CareGap helps users search by county or ZIP code, understand local shortage severity, and find affordable, telehealth, sliding-scale, and crisis resources. It turns an overwhelming, fragmented search into a clear, plain-language next step — available to anyone, with no account required.
Target population
CareGap is designed for the people most affected by access gaps:
- Underserved and provider-shortage communities
- Rural areas with few or no local providers
- Low-income and uninsured individuals
- Anyone navigating mental-health-shortage designations (HPSAs)
Public health goal
Improve mental health resource navigation and reduce access barriers. By making local shortage severity visible and pairing it with concrete, accessible options, CareGap aims to shorten the path from need to care — especially where that path has historically been the hardest.