Mental Health Awareness Briefing

On April 2, NGA hosted a briefing for state and territorial staff who focus on mental health awareness. Angela Kimball, Chief Advocacy Officer at Inseparable, provided updates on mental health initiatives and the current congressional, federal and state landscape. State highlights from her remarks included:

• State strategies to diversify funding, including adopting crisis telecom surcharges under the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020;
• Expansion of school Medicaid programs to ensure all Medicaid-enrolled students are covered by Medicaid when services are provided in schools;
• Utah's SB 26, which creates new licensures and certifications for paraprofessionals, including a behavioral health coach and a certified behavioral health technician;
• Georgia's passage of the interstate compact for school psychologists;
• Oklahoma's SB 254, which provides access to out-of-network care when in-network providers are not available; and
• Colorado's HB 25-1002, which provides fair standards for mental health care.

Kimball noted the positive downstream effects of these efforts, particularly in reducing strains on public systems like Medicaid and child welfare.

NGA staff also provided an update on NGA's federal priorities, including ensuring supportive tools and flexibilities for states and territories, along with updates on NGA's work with states on youth mental health, including:

• Strengthening Youth Mental Health: A Governor's Playbook,
• the Policy Academy on Strengthening Youth Mental Health, and
• an upcoming publication on best practices for engaging youth advisors and policy making.

The discussion concluded with a discussion on ways Governors can support the May observance of Mental Health Awareness Month, and a reminder to check out NGA's recent publication on licensure compacts.