Matsui, Mullin, Stabenow, Blunt, Announce Legislation to Extend and Expand Funding for Community-Based Mental Health and Addiction Services
Washington, D.C. U.S. Representatives Doris Matsui (CA-06) and Markwayne Mullin (OK-02) and Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Roy Blunt (R-MO) today announced a bill to extend and expand the funding for a program that improves community mental health and addiction services across the country. This legislation will ensure that the Certified Community Behavioral Health Centers that were established through the Excellence in Mental Health and Addiction Act will be funded for two additional years. Current program funding expires on March 31, 2019 in Oregon and Oklahoma and June 30, 2019 in Minnesota, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. The result would be program closures, staff layoffs, and reduced addiction treatment access to patients with the greatest need.
Certified Community Behavioral Health Centers (CCBHCs) provide a comprehensive range of mental health and substance use disorder services to vulnerable individuals. In return, CCBHCs receive an enhanced Medicaid reimbursement rate to meet the needs of these complex populations. CCHBCs provide nine types of services, with an emphasis on the provision of 24-hour crisis care, utilization of evidence-based practices, care coordination, and integration with physical health care. The Excellence in Mental Health and Addiction Expansion Act will fund these services for an additional two years and expand the available funding to an additional 11 states, which is an important next step toward fully funding quality mental and behavioral health services nationwide.
"This legislation will protect urgently needed mental health and addiction treatment services in communities around the country," said Congresswoman Matsui. "CCBHCs have dramatically increased access to 24-hour mental health care and substance use disorder treatment. Our bipartisan, bicameral legislation is vital for patients to continue to receive the necessary and comprehensive mental health and addiction support services they depend on and Congress must act now to extend this critical program."
Congresswoman Matsui first introduced the bipartisan Excellence in Mental Health Act in 2013. The bill was signed into law by President Obama in 2014 and was a significant step forward in community mental health funding.
The law is supported by over 50 mental health organizations, veterans organizations and law enforcement organizations including: the National Association of Police Organizations, National Sheriffs' Association, American Psychiatric Association, the American Psychological Association, National Alliance on Mental Illness, the National Council for Behavioral Health, American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Mental Health America, National Association of Psychiatric Health Systems, Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America and Give An Hour, among many others.