Kudos to the National Alliance on Mental Illness for publishing its third annual state survey that identifies major mental health legislation by state and also reports which legislatures have increased or cut spending for much needed mental health care.
My home state of Virginia got high ratings largely because it implemented a psychiatric inpatient bed registry system that was championed by state Senator Creigh Deeds after he was unable to get his son, Gus, into a local hospital. Gus later attacked his father before ending his own life.
Deeds has used that preventable tragedy to become a tour-de-force in Virginia. He’s an inspiring example of the power of one person to bring about major changes! It’s nice to read that Virginia is actually being praised rather than ending up near the bottom of mental health lists.
Please download NAMI’s state-by-state report and check your state. Not only will you learn if your elected leaders upped or cut mental health budgets, you’ll also be able to read about key mental health legislation that has been passed. You can compare how other states have reacted legislatively to issues such as civil commitment and court-ordered treatment, early intervention, Medicaid and Medicaid Expansion, Health Insurance parity, children and youth services, suicide, and your state’s criminal justice system. Gold stars pinpoint useful bills and red flags are used to spotlight awful bills.