The National Mental Health Association (NMHA) is deeply concerned about the outlook for mental health funding in the upcoming fiscal year.  Despite profound unmet needs, communities across the country face the prospect of funding cuts in mental health programs for FY 2002.  NMHA urges Members of Congress to produce a Labor, HHS Appropriations bill that does not come at the expense of people living with or at risk of mental illness. 

According to the U.S. Surgeon General, one in five Americans experiences a mental health disorder each year.  Sadly, less than a third of these adults and even fewer children receive any mental health services.  The consequences of untreated mental illness are traumatic, resulting in job loss, economic and personal hardship, disability, homelessness, and even suicide.

Investment in mental health services increases the availability of proven treatment and opportunities for individuals to recover and regain their lives.

• Mental Health Funding in Jeopardy
  
  
• Mental Health Services Improve Lives and Save Dollars

• Community-Based Mental Health Works

• Community-Based Mental Health Services Are Under-Funded

Research Shows that Treatment Offers a Powerful Return on Investment

• The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) notes that more than 80 percent of people with depression can be treated successfully with medications, psychotherapy or a combination of both. [1]
  
  
• Evaluations of the effectiveness of community-based systems of care for children indicate fewer reinstitutionalizations after discharge from residential settings, reduced out-of-state placement of children, and improvement in other individual outcomes such as the number of behavior problems and satisfaction with services.[2]
  
  
• A study done by the American Journal of Psychiatry noted that antidepressant treatment reduces overall healthcare costs by over 70 percent.3

• Comprehensive community-based mental health services for children and adolescents can cut public hospital admissions and lengths of stay and reduce average days of detention by approximately 40 percent.4

• The cost of crime and criminal justice is $4 to $7 more when substance abuse treatment is not available.5

• In 1996, the average cost of incarcerating an individual in a New York City jail was approximately $63,000.  In contrast, the cost of providing community-based housing to an individual in New York City was only $12,000 per year or $33 per day.6

Action Needed to Protect and Expand Mental Health Services

NMHA urges Congress to increase funding for mental health services in the FY 2002 appropriations bill and support the following mental health initiatives:

• Mental Health Block Grant – NMHA calls for increases in the block grant from $420 million to $670 million to provide much needed funding for community-based mental health services.

• CMHS Youth Anti-Violence Initiative – NMHA calls for an increase in funding from $90 million to $150 million to enable more school districts to mount youth violence prevention programs.

• Children’s Mental Health Services Program – NMHA calls for an increase in funding from $92 million to $140 million so that more communities can establish programs to provide services to children with serious emotional disorders (SED).

• Programs of Regional and National Significance –NMHA calls for an increase in funding for Programs of Regional and National Significance that help to translate research on effective treatment interventions into practice.  The Administration proposes to cut this program by $16 million but funding should be restored to its $197 million FY 2001 level.

Contact NMHA for More Information

For more information on mental health issues in the FY 2002 budget, contact Julio Abreu, Director of Government Affairs at (202) 675-8412.

Established in 1909 by former psychiatric patient Clifford W. Beers, the National Mental Health Association is the only national organization dedicated to addressing all aspects of mental health and mental illnesses.