WASHINGTON, DC — April 20, 2026 -- The National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) and West Health announced a strategic partnership to advance the integration of behavioral health into primary care, where most patients first seek help, enabling earlier identification, diagnosis and treatment of mental health conditions that might otherwise go unaddressed, untreated or misidentified.
The multi-year initiative combines NCQA’s leadership in healthcare quality measurement with West Health’s expertise in healthcare innovation, to align payers and providers around a core set of behavioral health quality measures and create a shared foundation for how care is delivered, evaluated and improved. Building on West Health’s Accelerator model , the partnership will function as an incubator to test and refine quality measures across diverse care settings and payer environments, as well as engage national partners to align incentives, support adoption, and drive broader system change.
“Behavioral health is health, and primary care is one of the critical entry points for many patients who struggle to obtain timely behavioral health support,” said Dr. Vivek Garg, President and CEO of NCQA. “By driving alignment on shared outcomes and practical quality measures, our partnership with West Health will help the ecosystem define what high‑quality behavioral health and primary care integration looks like, and provide the tools to support clinicians, protect patients, and sustain care over time.”
The partnership comes at a time when both behavioral health and primary care are under incredible strain. Despite growing demand, behavioral health care access is limited, and financial and structural barriers continue to stifle approaches to integration with primary care. According to SAMHSA, nearly 59 million adults in the U.S. experience mental illness each year, yet half do not receive treatment. And the downstream consequences for the broader healthcare system are real. Individuals with mental health conditions and substance use disorders are more likely to experience chronic health conditions like heart disease and diabetes. Similarly, people who are living with chronic conditions may struggle with depression or anxiety. Integrated care models that combine behavioral health and primary care are critical to improving access and coordination of care, leading to better health outcomes.
“Our collaboration with NCQA will combine our proven models for real-world implementation with their national measurement leadership to advance scalable solutions that can truly transform behavioral health delivery through primary care nationwide,” said Tim Lash, President, West Health. “At West Health, patient-centered isn’t a feature of our healthcare innovation — it’s the foundation of everything we build.”
Despite strong evidence of its effectiveness, adoption of integrated care delivery models remains limited across healthcare settings. Incentives alone won’t scale accountable care. Providers need clear quality measures, reliable data, and workflows built to sustain better care over time — that’s what turns value-based care from a payment model into a performance engine.
“Currently, there is no consensus on the quality measures that best support the delivery of behavioral health through primary care,” says Julie Seibert, NCQA’s Assistant Vice President of Behavioral Health. “There are numerous behavioral health related measures and frameworks, but adoption has not been consistent across the industry.”
NCQA and West Health will work with strategic partners to select a core set of behavioral health-focused quality measures for real-world testing and evaluation of performance. The initiative also includes the formation of a policy solutions coalition as well as payer workgroups to align with state and federal policy initiatives and ongoing advocacy for behavioral health integration into primary care.
“Quality measures can drive meaningful change in care delivery and patient outcomes,” Seibert added. “We look forward to partnering with industry stakeholders to better understand the challenges with implementing these measures and how we can help organizations move forward.”
NCQA and West Health will host a national convening of health plans, purchasers, and provider groups from across the U.S. on April 21, 2026 in Encinitas, CA, to reach consensus on behavioral health measures for inclusion in a standardized core set for health plan reporting.
About NCQA
NCQA is an independent nonprofit organization that defines and drives healthcare quality through accreditation, standards, performance measurement, and expert support. For more than 35 years, NCQA has advanced transparency, accountability, and enabled healthcare organizations to deliver better outcomes for patients. NCQA’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS ®2 ) is one of healthcare’s most widely used performance improvement tools. Learn more at ncqa.org . Follow NCQA on X @ncqa and on LinkedIn linkedin.com/company/ncqa .
About West Health
Solely funded by philanthropists Gary and Mary West, West Health is a family of nonprofit and nonpartisan organizations that include the Gary and Mary West Foundation and Gary and Mary West Health Institute in San Diego and the Gary and Mary West Health Policy Center in Washington, D.C. West Health is dedicated to lowering healthcare costs to enable seniors to successfully age in place with access to high-quality and affordable health and support services that preserve and protect their dignity, quality of life and independence. Learn more at westhealth.org .
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