Policy Priorities
Valor Together believes that bringing positive change to the mental health landscape requires a coordinated effort from everyone involved in the system. The Massachusetts state government and U.S. federal government are key players in the mental healthcare system and can enact policies that accelerate improvements in mental health outcomes for children.
Valor Together has identified four public policy priorities for our organization and endorses state and federal legislation that furthers those priorities.
1) Expand access to peer-support services.
Valor Together is founded on the concept of community and building a peer-support network. Peer-to-peer programs are proven to increase engagement, decrease medical spending, and improve whole health outcomes. However, these programs could benefit from increased funding and organizational capacity to expand services and provide better peer matches.
Federal and state agencies must advocate for expanded coverage and increased reimbursement of peer support services for all payers.
2) Increase early detection and intervention by promoting health literacy.
The prevalence of mental illness in children is increasing. According to a study published by the NIH, almost 20% of U.S. children and adolescents ages 3-17 have a diagnosed mental, emotional, developmental, or behavioral disorder. Another study from the CDC found that among adolescents, 36.7% had persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, 15.1% had a major depressive episode, and 18.8% seriously considered attempting suicide. It is imperative that we educate children about mental illness to destigmatize the subject and provide them with resources for assistance. Early detection of children at risk of mental illness can help identify children with mild symptoms to get them connect to resources sooner and prevent more adverse mental health outcomes.
Schools and healthcare providers must implement universal screening to aid in earlier detection. Universal implementation will destigmatize mental health and educate students on the signs of mental illness. Government policies can support these efforts by increasing funding to conduct such screenings. The Departments of Education and Health and Human Services (HHS) should provide guidance to schools for conducting mental health screenings. Additionally, the Departments should provide a suggested curriculum for health and wellness educators to disseminate to students.
3) Strengthen the mental health workforce.
Valor Together supports efforts to directly address the shortage and lack of diversity within the behavioral health workforce. Cultural competency related to race, ethnicity, socioeconomic background, gender-identity, sexual-identity, and age, is critical to ensuring the quality and effectiveness of behavioral health services for all individuals. Valor Together is dedicated to providing scholarships for the next generation of mental health professionals.
At the federal level, Congress should increase federal grants for students pursuing a career in mental health to cover tuition and related expenses. Congress should also establish provide funding to support mental health providers and prevent burnout, especially coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic. At the state level, Massachusetts offers a loan repayment program and grant opportunities for mental health workers. These programs should be strengthened and expanded to fund more prospective mental health workers. Additionally, legislation to strengthen the workforce should ensure providers receive cultural-competency training to ensure providers can best serve individuals from diverse backgrounds.
4) Ensure enforcement of mental health parity laws.
Mental health is an essential element of health care, and health plans should treat it as such. With Medicaid unwinding following the end of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency, many individuals face sudden coverage changes that emphasize the need for parity in mental health coverage across all health plans. Federal law, namely the Mental Health Parity Act of 1996 and the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008, provides that insurance coverage for mental health services must be comparable to coverage for other services. In 2000, Massachusetts also implemented its own parity law, which covers most health plans offered or renewed in the Commonwealth. This legislation builds on federal legislation to protect Massachusetts residents against discriminatory practices in mental health coverage. However, policies are meaningless without effective implementation and enforcement.
Valor Together urges the Commonwealth, specifically the Department of Mental Health Services, Mass Health, and the Department of Insurance to enforce behavioral health parity laws.
Legislation We Support
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S.1248: An Act to Increase Investment in Behavioral Health Care in the Commonwealth
This state legislation creates a requirement for a 30% increase in behavioral health expenditures over baseline behavioral health care spending. Health care systems and insurers would be held accountable for achieving the behavioral health investment target starting in 2027 through the same process currently in effect for the health care cost growth benchmark, as set by the Health Policy Commission (HPC).
S.631: An Act Relative to Access to Care for Serious Mental Illness
This state legislation requires health insurance coverage for medications used to prevent, assess, or treat serious mental illness without certain forms of utilization management, specifically prior authorization or step therapy.
View Fact Sheet for S.631 (form. SD.1376)
S.240/H.497: An Act Relative to Mental Health Education
This state legislation requires all K-12 public and charter schools to provide mental health education to students. The curriculum is not specifically mandated, but should take a holistic, evidence-informed approach that educates students on the role of mental health as part of overall health, the signs and symptoms of mental illness, and how to get help.
View Fact Sheet for Mental Health Education Bill
S.1237/H.1999: An Act Relative to Student Mental Health
This state legislation would mandate Massachusetts public schools with any students in grades 6 through 12, including charter schools, to include the telephone and the number for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline on student identification cards.
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S.2733: PEER Support Act
This federal legislation addresses the behavioral health workforce shortages through support for peer support specialists. This legislation directs the Director of the Office Management and Budget to revise the Standard Occupational Classification system to include an occupational category for peer support specialists. The legislation also establishes an Office of Recovery to oversee peer support services within SAMHSA. Finally, the legislation directs the Secretary of HHS and Attorney General to develop a report on research and recommendations with respect to criminal background check processes for individuals becoming peer support specialists.
View Fact Sheet for PEER Support Act
S.923: Better Mental Health Care for Americans Act
This federal legislation modifies programs and payment rates for behavioral health services under Medicare, Medicare Advantage, the Medicare prescription drug benefit, Medicaid, and the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). Of note, it establishes and allocates funds for a Medicaid demonstration program to provide certain mental health and substance use disorder services to children in a variety of settings, including schools and hospitals. Additionally, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services must audit state Medicaid and CHIP programs with respect to parity requirements and post its related enforcement actions on its website; the bill provides funds for these purposes.
View Fact Sheet for Better Mental Health Care for Americans Act
S.1700: Pursuing Equity in Mental Health Act
This federal legislation sets out activities and modifies existing programs to address racial and ethnic mental health disparities. Specifically, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) must implement a strategy for promoting behavioral and mental health and reducing stigma associated with mental health conditions and substance use disorder among racial and ethnic minority groups. HHS must consult with appropriate advocacy groups and behavioral health organizations on this strategy. Additionally, HHS must seek to contract with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine for a study on research gaps related to mental health disparities among racial and ethnic minority groups.
Modifications to existing programs include (1) permitting HHS to prioritize health care facilities that serve a high proportion of racial and ethnic minority groups when awarding grants for integrating physical and behavioral health care, and (2) extending the authorization for the grants from FY2027 through FY2029. The bill also permits the use of funds available through the Minority Fellowship Program for developing best practices or core competencies to address mental health disparities in curricula for training social workers, psychologists, and other behavioral health professionals.
S.3060/H.R.3548: Youth Mental Health Research Act
This federal legislation establishes a Youth Mental Health Research Initiative in the National Institutes of Health to encourage collaborative research. The legislation authorizes funding to implement the initiative.
H.R.7808: EARLY Minds Act
This federal legislation amends the Public Health Service Act to provide for prevention and early intervention services under the Block Grants for Community Mental Health Services program. Specifically, under this legislation states can allocate up to 5% of their Mental Health Block Grant funding towards prevention and early intervention initiatives. Additionally, the legislation mandates that the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) provide biennial reports to Congress, detailing states' efforts in prevention and early intervention. These reports must include comprehensive information on activities undertaken, demographics of individuals served, achieved outcomes, and any other pertinent data.