Friday, May 5, 2023
Executive Summary:
- Secretary Becerra announced two new initiatives at the HHS Mental Health Summit: FindSupport.gov and HHS Children and Youth Resilience Challenge.
- FindSupport.gov is an online guide to help people find mental health, drug, or alcohol support and resources based on their insurance status.
- HHS Children and Youth Resilience Challenge will provide $1 million for community-led solutions to promote resilience in children and adolescents affected by COVID-19 and other disasters.
- Proposals for the Resilience Challenge are due by July 7, 2023, and an informational webinar will be held on May 18, 2023.
- For more information on the Challenge and submitting proposals, visit: www.challenge.gov/?challenge=resilience
Unedited Press Release Text:
FindSupport.gov and HHS Children and Youth Resilience Challenge will increase access to health resources and support.
Secretary Becerra, at the HHS Mental Health Summit, announced new initiatives by the Biden-Harris Administration to increase access to mental health resources and support.
The two initiatives – FindSupport.gov and the HHS Children and Youth Resilience Challenge – will increase access to health resources and support for those working to address mental health challenges.
The launch of FindSupport.gov will help Americans identify available resources, explore information about various treatment options, and learn how to reach out to get the support they need for issues related to mental health, drugs or alcohol. FindSupport.gov is a user-friendly, online guide that helps people navigate through common questions when they are at the start of their journey to better behavioral health, such as how to ask for help, how to help others and how to search for a health care professional or support program that meets their needs. The website provides information on how to find treatment and support based on insurance status, including Medicaid, Medicare, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs health care, TRICARE, private insurance, and no insurance. It also features resources on how to set up an appointment so that when people meet with a health care professional, they can feel confident that they are taking the right steps.
The HHS Children and Youth Resilience Challenge will provide $1 million in funding for innovative community-led solutions to promote resilience in children and adolescents affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and other disasters, and promote positive strategies to help children and adolescents thrive. The Resilience Challenge, which was developed by the HHS Behavioral Health Coordinating Council Subcommittee on Children and Youth, is recognized as part of the President’s Uniy Agendat and Mental Health Strategy and advances HHS’ Roadmap for Behavioral Health Integration – PDF.
“Thanks to President Biden, we are finally and seriously saying to anyone struggling with their mental health: support is here. I am proud that we are changing the way mental health is viewed in this country because mental health is health, period.” said Secretary Becerra. “At HHS, we will continue tackling our nation’s mental health crisis by increasing understanding of the challenges people are facing, decreasing stigma associated with these challenges, and improving access to support by better integrating it inside and outside of the health care system.”
“The Biden-Harris Administration set forth a bold vision of integrated, equitable and accessible behavioral health care. These initiatives are part of our commitment at HHS to realizing that vision and to ensuring all Americans have the support and resources they need,” said HHS Deputy Secretary Andrea Palm. “I started my career working in behavioral health and I know the real, tangible difference that these initiatives can make. HHS will continue to advance the policies and resources necessary to enhance the health and well-being of all Americans.”
Additional information on the two initiatives:
FindSupport.gov
Nearly 1 in 3 adults have mental health, substance use or co-occurring issues, according to SAMHSA’s most recent National Survey on Drug Use and Health. In 2022, SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357) received more than 1.1 million calls and the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which launched in July 2022, received more than 2.1 million contacts (calls, texts, and chats) between July and December 2022.
FindSupport.gov features inclusive success stories in plain language that illustrate different types of behavioral health experiences; lists of how to talk to someone about getting help; steps on how to cope with mental health, drug or alcohol issues; signs of when to seek help and tools to ask for help; and information on how to pay for treatment with or without insurance.
The website is intended to support the President’s Unity Agenda and its goal to increase access to mental health and substance use resources. Using human-centered design methods, site developers aimed to deliver a product that responded to the public’s needs. The concept for FindSupport.gov was developed by HHS’s Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and based on research showing that people were looking for an unbiased, trustworthy source of information on how to get support for mental health and substance use issues.
To learn how to get support for mental health, drug or alcohol issues, visit FindSupport.gov. If you are ready to locate a treatment facility or provider, you can also go directly to FindTreatment.gov or call 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
A video guide of FindSupport.gov is available for download and use in reporting, courtesy of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
The Resilience Challenge
Children and youth in the United States are experiencing a mental health crisis. The U.S. Surgeon General’s Advisory – PDF reports rising rates of psychological distress, including anxiety, depression, and other emotional and behavioral symptoms among children and youth. Among youth ages 12 to 17 who experienced a major depressive episode – PDF, nearly half perceived that the COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected their mental health. Emergency department visits for mental health concerns have also increased significantly. These patterns are intensified among children and adolescents exposed to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Promoting youth resilience—their ability to adapt in the face of adversity—is critical to avoiding long-term negative mental health outcomes.
The Resilience Challenge will include a proposal phase and a pilot phase for selected finalists. Proposals are due Friday, July 7, 2023. An informational webinar open to the public will be held on May 18, 2023, from 3-4:15 pm ET in English, with Spanish translation available. Please register for the webinar at this link: https://acf-hhs-gov.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_Pw1dAVtmS0Ka9-jmylGT7A .
For more information about the Challenge and how to submit a proposal, please visit www.challenge.gov/?challenge=resilience.
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