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President Focused on Mental Health in the State of the Union Address

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Great news, mental health advocates! President Biden delivered his first State of the Union address and one of the top priorities in his speech was addressing our country’s mental health crisis.

NAMI released a statement from our CEO, Daniel H. Gillison Jr. in reaction to this news:

“NAMI applauds President Biden for his unprecedented focus on mental health in the State of the Union address, providing the national attention that our ongoing mental health crisis deserves. From expanding our mental health workforce and reimagining our response to mental health crises, to increasing access to care and supporting the mental health of our youth and young adults, the President is proposing bold investments in our mental health infrastructure”

The White House identified several key areas that the President is prioritizing in his strategy to address our national mental health crisis, which align with NAMI’s policy priorities. These include:

  • Building up the capacity of our systems to support people with mental health and substance use conditions by investing $700 million to expand the supply, diversity and cultural competency of the mental health and substance use workforce, creating a national certification for peer support specialists, and making a nearly $700 million investment in our crisis continuum of care as we prepare for the July rollout of 988 for mental health crises

  • Ensuring that every American can access mental health and substance use care by strengthening mental health parity, investing $1 billion to double the number of school-based mental health professionals and permanently expanding access to tele- and virtual mental health care

  • Supporting Americans by creating healthy environments with investments of $70 million to expand early childhood and school-based intervention services, instituting stronger online protections for young people and increasing mental health resources for justice-involved populations
Thanks to advocates like you, policymakers are listening and making mental health a priority. Help us keep up the momentum. Sign our petition to urge Congress to pass these important mental health proposals without delay.

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