5 Mental Health Bills with Broad Support

Mental Health Reform Reauthorization Bill:

• Objective: Continue funding and expand programs from the 21st Century Cares Act.
• Key Points:
  • Expands oversight of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
  • Increases the number of mental health care workers.
  • Focuses on pediatric mental health care.
  • Evaluates insurance companies' compliance with mental health coverage parity.

Mental Health Matters Act:

• Objective: Enhance mental health support for students, families, and educators.
• Key Points:
  • Directs grants for increasing and retaining mental health providers in schools.
  • Guarantees disability accommodation and transparency for students with disabilities entering higher education.
  • Enforces private, employer-sponsored health plans to provide required substance use disorder and mental health benefits.

Restoring Hope for Mental Health and Well-Being Act of 2022:

• Objective: Ensure the continuation of over 30 mental health programs through 2027.
• Key Points:
  • Expands substance use disorder care by removing the one-year opioid use requirement for qualifying for treatment programs.

Resilience Investment, Support, and Expansion (RISE) From Trauma Act:

• Objective: Invest in projects and training to support children and families affected by trauma.
• Key Points:
  • Provides funds for pilot projects to improve the well-being of children experiencing trauma.
  • Increases the number of trauma-informed frontline workers and law enforcement officers through additional training.
  • Establishes prevention projects for hospital patients and primary prevention projects to reduce stress and trauma.

Sgt. Ketchum Rural Veterans Mental Health Act of 2021:

• Objective: Improve mental health care access for veterans, particularly those in rural areas.
• Key Points:
  • Requires the Veterans Administration (VA) to create new centers for the Rural Access Network for Growth Enhancement (RANGE) Program.
  • Mandates an investigation by the Government Accountability Office to assess the VA's resources for supporting veterans' mental health needs beyond outpatient care.