Hill Day Fact Sheet Excellence In Mental Health Act

In 2014, the bipartisan Excellence in Mental Health and Addiction Treatment Expansion Act began to address the desperate demand for treatment of addictions and mental illnesses by establishing criteria for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs), which provide a comprehensive range of addiction and mental health services to the communities they serve, including vulnerable individuals. In return, CCBHCs receive a bundled Medicaid payment rate that allows them to expand services to previously untreated populations. Since 2017, clinics in eight states have been piloting this approach and are leading a shift in care that is desperately needed in every state in our nation. However, with CCBHC demonstration funding expiring on September 13, 2019, access to these lifesaving treatments — and the lessons learned for the nation at large — could be lost without immediate Congressional action.