Mental Health Care in Collingswood, NJ: A Local Guide

Collingswood, Westmont and Oaklyn run together along Haddon Avenue and the PATCO line, and for mental health care it makes sense to treat them as one place. They draw on the same short list: two nonprofit counseling centers, one on Haddon Avenue in Collingswood and one on Highland Avenue in Haddon Township, the Camden County crisis system a short drive away in Cherry Hill, and the low-cost health centers in Camden a few train stops west. If you have NJ FamilyCare (Medicaid) or Medicare, start with the one inside Collingswood, Genesis Counseling Center, because it lists both among the plans it accepts.

If anyone is in immediate danger, call 911. For thoughts of suicide or a mental health crisis, call or text 988 at any hour. If someone may be a danger to themselves or others but is not in immediate danger, call Camden County's crisis screening line, run by Oaks Integrated Care: 856-428-4357 (856-428-HELP), 24 hours a day. Our crisis page has more numbers.

Quick answer: In a crisis, call 911 if anyone is in immediate danger. For thoughts of suicide or a mental health crisis, call or text 988 at any hour. If someone may be a danger to themselves or others but is not in immediate danger, call Camden County's crisis screening line, run by Oaks, at 856-428-4357, 24 hours a day. For counseling, Genesis Counseling Center, a nonprofit at 566 Haddon Avenue, Collingswood, 856-858-9314, lists NJ FamilyCare (Medicaid) and Medicare among the plans it accepts. Starting Point, a nonprofit at 215 Highland Avenue, Suite C, Haddon Township, 856-854-3155, does not publish fees but says no one should be turned away for lack of resources.

Genesis Counseling Center on Haddon Avenue

Genesis Counseling Center is a nonprofit at 566 Haddon Avenue, Collingswood, phone 856-858-9314. It offers mental health and drug and alcohol counseling for all ages: individual, group, family, and couples and marriage counseling. Its staff includes licensed social workers, licensed professional counselors and certified addiction counselors, and Genesis says a psychiatrist is available through referral.

Genesis lists NJ FamilyCare (Medicaid), Medicare, Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield and Aetna among the insurance it accepts. If you pay yourself, its published prices are $125 for the first assessment and $75 for a 60-minute session. After the intake, Genesis says it takes about 48 to 72 hours to assign a counselor, who then calls you to set the next appointment. When you call, confirm that it takes your exact plan.

The counseling center on Highland Avenue

Starting Point is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit at 215 Highland Avenue, Suite C, Haddon Township, phone 856-854-3155. We could not confirm, on any operator's own website, a hospital, a county-run clinic or a community health center with an address in Collingswood, Westmont or Oaklyn.

It is not set up like a clinic. Starting Point describes itself as a wellness center, and its counseling comes from a team of practitioners it lists by name and specialty on its site. Its home page describes individual and family sessions with qualified professionals, in person or virtual. Its about page lists the problems clients bring, including anxiety, depression, grief and loss, anger, relationship trouble, eating and body-image issues, and addiction recovery. You can request a counseling consultation by phone or through its website.

It also hosts donation-based support groups. Starting Point says it depends largely on charitable donations because it is not state or federally funded, and it does not publish fees or an insurance list. Its stated position is that no one with a mental health or addiction problem should be turned away for lack of resources. What that means in dollars for you is something to settle on the first call.

Hours are Monday to Friday, noon to 8 p.m., and Saturday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Starting Point's practitioner list mixes licensed therapists and psychologists with coaches and wellness practitioners. When you call, ask for a counseling consultation, what a session costs for you, and whether the practitioner you would see is a licensed mental health professional who takes your insurance. If the answers do not work for you, call Genesis at 856-858-9314 the same day, or the Oaks Access Center at 1-800-963-3377 (weekdays, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.), and ask for an outpatient intake. Write down the name of the person you spoke with and any date they give you.

Where can you get weekly therapy that takes Medicaid or Medicare?

Genesis Counseling Center, on Haddon Avenue, lists NJ FamilyCare (Medicaid) and Medicare among the plans it accepts. If it cannot see you soon, Oaks Integrated Care in Cherry Hill also takes Medicaid and Medicare. Oaks lists outpatient offices at 19 East Ormond Avenue (856-428-1300) and 1409 North Kings Highway (856-482-8747). The way in is its Access Center, 1-800-963-3377, weekdays 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Our Cherry Hill guide covers what Oaks' outpatient program offers and how it bills.

If you are not sure what kind of care you need, call NJMentalHealthCares at 1-866-202-4357. The state lists it as open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., seven days a week, with trained staff who offer free, confidential support and help finding a provider. It is not a crisis line. If anyone is in immediate danger, call 911. Outside those hours, use 988.

For private practice therapists, our guide to finding a therapist in Camden County explains how to check a license and ask about fees. If money is the obstacle, read therapy without insurance.

What if it cannot wait for a weekly appointment?

Both services that sit between a therapy appointment and an emergency room are run by Oaks in Cherry Hill. Our Cherry Hill guide covers hours, cost and what a visit involves, so this is only what you need to pick the right one.

Mental Health Urgent Care, 2051 Springdale Road, 856-254-3800, is for Camden County adults 18 and older who need help now but do not need a hospital.

If someone, adult or child, may be a danger to themselves or others but is not in immediate danger, call the county's crisis screening line, 856-428-4357, before going anywhere. Oaks runs screening at Jefferson Cherry Hill Hospital, 2201 Chapel Avenue, and asks for that call first. The same number is how a family member, friend or employer requests Adult Mobile Outreach for an adult who is getting worse and will not come in.

Where do parents in these towns start with a child or teen?

The clearest written guidance from a school in these towns comes from Haddon Township Public Schools, whose guidance department keeps a crisis referral page. It says that if your child is in immediate crisis, call 911. Otherwise, it points families to the hospital at 2201 Chapel Avenue in Cherry Hill, which is where Oaks runs Camden County's crisis screening. Call 856-428-4357 before you go.

For a crisis at home that is not life-threatening, the first call for a child is PerformCare, 1-877-652-7624, New Jersey's Children's System of Care line, open 24 hours a day. In Camden County, Oaks runs Children's Mobile Response, which provides in-home crisis intervention for young people. The Haddon Township page lists the same number and notes that a parent or legal guardian has to consent to services.

The district also publishes a list of local therapists and psychiatrists. Read it for what it is. The district says the names were recommended by families of Haddon Township, and it suggests checking your insurance company's list of in-network providers as another option. At least one entry is out of date: the list puts the Camden County Family Support Organization in Merchantville, while the organization's own site now gives 1030 Kings Highway North, Suite 210, Cherry Hill.

That organization is worth a call of its own. The Camden County Family Support Organization, 856-662-2600, says it is built and led by parents and caregivers of children with emotional, behavioral or mental health challenges. Its advocates offer one-on-one support and can attend school IEP meetings and Child-Family Team meetings with you, and it runs family support groups across the county.

We could not load Collingswood Public Schools' counseling pages to confirm what that district offers. In Collingswood or Oaklyn, start with your child's school counselor. Our parent's guide covers warning signs and how to raise the subject.

Taking PATCO to Camden

Collingswood and Westmont both have PATCO stations. Heading west, the line runs through Ferry Avenue to Broadway and City Hall, Camden's two downtown stops. That matters if you have no insurance or have NJ FamilyCare, because several of Camden County's low-cost community health centers are in the city. Our City of Camden guide lists the ones we confirmed open, what each says about behavioral health, and how each handles patients who cannot pay. Hours and open sites change, so call before you ride. For coverage questions, see our guide to NJ FamilyCare and mental health.

If you are supporting an adult family member, the family and peer groups we confirmed for the county are in the families section of our Cherry Hill guide.

The first call for regular counseling

For an adult or a child in Collingswood, Westmont or Oaklyn who needs ongoing counseling, Genesis is generally the place to start. It is on Haddon Avenue, it sees all ages, and it lists NJ FamilyCare (Medicaid) and Medicare. Ask two things when you call: whether it takes your exact plan, and when the intake can happen. After the intake, Genesis says it takes about 48 to 72 hours to assign a counselor, who then calls you to set the next appointment.

If Genesis does not take your plan or cannot see you soon, the next calls are Starting Point at 856-854-3155 and the Oaks Access Center at 1-800-963-3377, weekdays 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. An intake date on the calendar does not mean you have to wait for it if things get worse. Call 911 if anyone is in immediate danger. For thoughts of suicide or a mental health crisis, call or text 988 at any hour. If someone may be a danger to themselves or others but is not in immediate danger, call the county's crisis screening line, 856-428-4357, 24 hours a day.