Governor's Agenda 2022 Recap: Mental Health

The effect of the pandemic on American mental health has sparked a powerful wave of support from Governors across the nation. In 2022, mental health featured in the State of the State Addresses of 18 different states. This represents a 100% increase from the previous year when only 9 states mentioned mental health as a policy priority.  Clearly mental health resources and services is a significant growing focus for state Governors. A 2022 report released by Mental Health America found that, “over half of adults with mental illness do not receive treatment, totaling over 27 million adults in the U.S. who are going untreated…[and] the percentage of adults with a mental illness who report unmet need for treatment has increased every year since 2011.” In response, Governors around the nation spoke about rising behavioral and mental health needs, and the need to provide support and funding for issues like suicide prevention, access to treatment, services for substance abuse, high demands for crisis resources, and more.

According to the same Mental Health America study, an increasing percentage of American youths are living with major depression, growing in 2022 to a staggering 15.08% of youth experiencing a “major depressive episode in the last year.” Addressing mental health service gaps for school aged children and students has become a clear priority and many states are releasing contracting opportunities related to closing those gaps. Governor Kathy Hochul of New York spoke to this, saying “We will add more mental health professionals in schools to heal the wounds inflicted during the isolation of remote learning.”

Indeed, many Governors pledged new or increased funding for mental health services in 2022. Proposed services include counseling resources, telehealth and other virtual health services, mobile crisis centers, the implementation of the 988 for suicide prevention and mental health crises, and increased funding for mental health resources for school aged children and students. Kim Reynolds, Governor of Iowa, stated “I’m proposing to increase mental health funding by $15 million this year, and another $15 million next year, to fully fund those reform efforts. And I know that our mental health regions are working on innovative solutions to address the unique needs of children who have been affected by the pandemic.”

Responding to the growing mental health crisis in America involves countless policy priorities, and many Governors are turning their focus to working to close service gaps and to fund mental health programs.

 

Below are some current active opportunities in GovWinIQ reflective of mental health priorities:

• Hybrid Mental Health and Substance Use Programs – San Diego County
• Universal Mental Health/ Substance Use/ Resilience Screenings for School-Aged Youth - Montana
• Behavioral Health Virtual Services (BHVS) - California

Additional Deltek resources available regarding this year's State of the State addresses:

• Webinar: "‘State of the States’: Innovation, Equity, and Infrastructure"
• Data Set: "Governors' State of the States Agenda Items (2019-2022)"

Links to State of the State Addresses may be found here:

• State of the State Addresses