Barrasso Leads Bill to Modernize Rural Health Care

Feb 1, 2023 - Announces that Senators John Barrasso, Tina Smith, Marsha Blackburn, and Michael Bennet have introduced The Rural Health Clinic Burden Reduction Act to provide regulatory relief for Rural Health Clinics (RHCs). The bill gives RHCs guidance regarding the use of nurse practitioners and physician assistants, improves the ability of RHCs to provide mental health services, and removes outdated lab requirements.

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Native Americans Left Out of 'Deaths of Despair' Research

Feb 1, 2023 - A study published in The Lancet says that premature "deaths of despair" have affected American Indian and Alaska Native communities more than white communities. American Indians and Alaska Native people were not surveyed in a 2015 study that looked at death rates for 45-54 year-olds from 1999-2013.

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Mental Health Solution Aids Struggling Rural Schoolchildren

Jan 26, 2023 - The Teachers and Parents as Partners program trains school psychologists and other specialists to encourage communication between parents and educators, to help solve children's behavioral and academic challenges. The project is in the midst of a five-year research project to create an online version designed specifically to help rural districts.

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A Year to Prepare – Organizers Work to Ensure 988 Helps Rural Residents Too

Jan 24, 2023 - In July 2022 the federal government launched the 988 Suicide Prevention Hotline, enabling people experiencing a mental health crisis to connect with professionals and services. The real launch will occur this summer, and rural communities are preparing for an increase in calls by training operators how to provide help to farmers and other rural residents.

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Report: 113K U.S. Indigenous Individuals Live in Mental Health Care Deserts

Jan 24, 2023 - Highlights a report from GoodRx Research, stating that more than 113,000 American Indians and Alaska Natives (AI/AN) live in 492 counties that lack mental health providers. The study also found that counties with a higher population of AI/AN residents had a lower percentage of households with access to telehealth. States with the highest numbers of mental health deserts are Texas, Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Alaska. South Dakota and Alaska are among the states with highest numbers of AI/AN residents living in mental health deserts.

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SAMHSA: Notice of Meeting for the Interdepartmental Serious Mental Illness Coordinating Committee Federal Register

Jan 19, 2023 - The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) will hold a virtual public meeting of the Interdepartmental Serious Mental Illness Coordinating Committee (ISMICC) on March 14, 2023, from 11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Eastern. The meeting will provide information on federal efforts related to serious mental illness (SMI) and serious emotional disturbance (SED). The agenda and information on how to join the meeting will be posted on the SAMHSA website before the meeting.

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988 Lifeline Sees Boost in Use and Funding in First Months

Jan 16, 2023 - The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline was launched in July 2022 and received over 1.7 million calls, texts, and chats in its first five months. The program has received close to $1 billion in funding from the federal government, including more than $500 million in the federal spending bill.

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Starting Tuesday, All U.S. Military Veterans in Suicidal Crisis Will Be Eligible for Free Care at Any VA or Private Facility

Jan 13, 2023 - A new policy allows veterans in crisis to have up to 30 days of free inpatient or crisis residential care and up to 90 days of follow-on outpatient care. Veterans do not have to be enrolled in the VA system to be eligible

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Most State Medicaid Programs Intend to Keep Pandemic-Era Expansions in Telehealth for Behavioral Health Services and Are Adopting Strategies to Address Workforce Shortages in Behavioral Health

Jan 10, 2023 - Describes new two Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF) studies, with findings drawn from KFF's Behavioral Health Survey of state Medicaid programs. The first study explores expansion of telehealth and of the types of providers who may be reimbursed for telehealth delivery of behavioral health services. The second examines strategies some state Medicaid programs are implementing to address the behavioral health workforce shortage.

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HHS Awards Nearly $245 Million to Support Youth Mental Health and Help the Health Care Workforce Meet Families' Mental Health Needs

Jan 9, 2023 - Announces that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has awarded almost $245 million in Bipartisan Safer Communities Act funding to promote youth mental health, including school-based programs. The funding will also be used to support integration of mental health training into the education of primary care clinicians.

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