National Association of Counties
The National Association of Counties (NACo) led a bipartisan group of nearly 150 county elected officials in calling on Congress to pass key county priorities in an end-of-year behavioral and mental health legislative package.
In a letter to U.S. Senate and House leadership, the county officials pointed to five policies that would significantly improve local behavioral health services:
Counties are integral to the nation’s behavioral health system, both funding and coordinating behavioral health services, including those provided in county-owned and operated community health facilities. Additionally, counties help finance and administer Medicaid services, the largest source of funding for behavioral health services in the United States. By directing resources to community-based treatment and services, we can better serve our residents with behavioral health conditions, reduce reliance on the criminal legal system and direct valuable resources towards improving stability and health.
Congress still has an opportunity to build on the success of major investments into mental health and substance use disorder over the last few years by passing additional behavioral health policies that would improve the lives of millions of Americans before the end of the year.
Click here to view the full letter and its signatories.
<p><strong>Note: This convening will focus on strategies for rural and smaller suburban counties.
<p><strong>Note: This convening will focus on strategies for urban and larger suburban counties.
<h1>With <a id="naco" name="naco">NACo</a>, Saving Feels Better</h1>
<p>NACo's Opioid Solutions Center empowers local leaders to invest resources in effective treatment, recovery, prevention and harm reduction practices that save lives and address the underlying causes of substance use disorder.
