We fight to advance policies intended to expand access to comprehensive, equitable mental health and substance use treatment services.
We work to ensure mental health and substance use treatment organizations can meet the needs of their communities now and in the future. We advocate for federal and state funding, new and innovative care delivery and payment models, and a strong mental health and substance use treatment workforce. By improving access to lifesaving services, we can make mental wellbeing — including recovery from substance use challenges — a reality for everyone.
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Our nation is grappling with multiple mental health and substance use crises. Lack of access to comprehensive lifesaving care, record-high overdose rates, dramatic increases in suicidal ideation and a mental health workforce shortage – all of which made worse by the COVID-19 pandemic – are just some of the daunting challenges. But together, we can turn the tide by pushing for solutions that expand access to care, when and where people need it.
Join us on June 8 for a free, virtual advocacy event where you’ll have the chance to hear from policymakers, plus take action to urge your elected officials to support key mental health and substance use initiatives.
Register TodayLearn more about our 2022 public policy priorities to increase access to high-quality mental health and substance use treatment services.
Policy PrioritiesTips, tricks and downloadable templates for becoming a mental health and substance use treatment advocate in your community
Advocacy Handbook
988, the new three-digit number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, goes live on July 16, 2022. The new dialing code will not immediately replace the current lifeline number – 1-800-273-TALK (8255) – but will offer callers a more convenient and easier to remember option. While adopting 988 is a momentous step toward improving access to rapid and lifesaving mental health and substance use care, it will require significant investment and coordination over the coming years to realize and fulfill its potential. Please utilize the below resources to learn about 988.
In the short-term, the goal is to strengthen and expand the current Lifeline call center infrastructure and capacity to ensure trained crisis counselors are available to quickly respond to 988 via call, text, or chat. In the longer term, the vision is to build a robust crisis response system across the country that links callers to community-based providers who can deliver a full range of crisis care services, if needed (like mobile crisis teams or stabilization centers). This more robust system will be essential to meeting crisis care needs across the nation.
A new report from the Committee on Psychiatry and the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry, released by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, outlines the steps we must take now – before the launch of 9-8-8 – to ensure people in crisis receive the high-quality behavioral health services they need.
Roadmap to the Ideal Crisis SystemThrough their standardized crisis response capabilities, their broad range of required crisis care, and their role in serving all individuals regardless of location or ability to pay, CCBHCs are uniquely positioned to serve as a cornerstone in our nation’s new crisis response system, decreasing the burden on 911 operators, law enforcement officials, and emergency departments.
CCBHCs and Crisis Response SystemsIN THE NUMBERS This week, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimated that more than 107,600 Americans died from drug overdoses from December 2020 to December 2021, setting another tragic record in the nation’s substance use crisis. Additionally, the data shows overdose deaths involving fentanyl and other synthetic opioids…
BREAKING NEWS Children’s Mental Health Awareness Week (May 1-7) spotlights the importance of caring for the mental health of children and raising awareness about children’s mental health. Since 2005, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) has observed Children’s Mental Health Awareness Day to inform the public…
