Behavioral Health
Featured Initiative
NACo Commission on Mental Health and Wellbeing
(2023-2024) Counties increasingly handle direct mental health services, acting as the safety net for vulnerable residents and operating crisis lines, hospitals and detention centers. NACo’s Commission on Mental Health and Wellbeing developed reports and united county leaders to address the mental health crisis through four key policy priorities.
Resource
From Crisis to Solutions: Policy Catalysts for Improved Outcomes
Funding Strategies for County Behavioral Health Crisis Care
View NACo's infographic on how counties can leverage diverse funding streams and intergovernmental and cross-sector partners to improve coordination of care for individuals with mental illness and substance use disorders.
County Funding Opportunities to Support Community Members Experiencing a Behavioral Health Crisis
County and local officials play a critical role in funding, implementing and coordinating a local continuum of care to support people during a behavioral health crisis. Counties allocate $100 billion annually to community health systems – including behavioral health support – and provide services through 750 behavioral health authorities and community providers.
NACo Commission on Mental Health and Wellbeing: Reimagining the Advancement of Mental Health Support Through Policy Reform
The mental health crisis in America is a dire situation that demands urgent attention.
County Leadership in Mental Health: How Counties Are Leading the Way to Address Workforce Challenges
Behavioral health conditions affect millions of Americans. With demand for services increasing and a shortage of providers nationwide, it is critical to develop both interim and long-term solutions for enhancing the workforce to respond to the needs of local residents.
County Leadership in Mental Health: How Counties are Leading the Way in Crisis System Transformation
America’s 3,069 counties are integral to the local behavioral health system of care, including crisis care. Each year counties invest billions in the infrastructure in community health, hospitals, and social services, as well as $107 billion in justice and public safety systems.
Latest News & Analysis
Supported Mothers, Thriving Children: Connecting Maternal Health and Child Wellbeing
Counties can significantly improve children's health and wellbeing by supporting maternal mental health through a variety of key strategies. In this webinar, speakers will explore examples of local policies and programs that bolster county efforts to holistically address child wellbeing through focusing on maternal mental health and substance use. Participants will gain insights into local options for addressing maternal mental health needs and substance misuse, learn about the challenges and triumphs experienced by county programs, and discover new opportunities to strengthen their local children’s health services.
NACo Commission on Mental Health and Wellbeing
(2023-2024) Counties increasingly handle direct mental health services, acting as the safety net for vulnerable residents and operating crisis lines, hospitals and detention centers. NACo’s Commission on Mental Health and Wellbeing developed reports and united county leaders to address the mental health crisis through four key policy priorities.
Familiar Faces Initiative
The Familiar Faces Initiative aimed to reduce incarceration and hospitalization rates for individuals frequently cycling through jails, shelters, and emergency services. The program encouraged communities to share data and integrate care between health and justice systems for earlier intervention, improving outcomes for these "familiar faces."
Opioid Solutions Center
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.
The Stepping Up Initiative
The Stepping Up Initiative is a data-driven framework that aims to reduce the overincarceration of people with mental illnesses in jails through training, resources, and support that are tailored to local needs.
Toolkit for Counties: 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
The nationwide transition to 988 on July 16, 2022 provides an easier way for people experiencing mental distress to access the existing National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. This page features resources to help county leaders support the 988 transition and leverage this opportunity to expand access to behavioral health care for all community members.
Related Committees & Caucuses
Healthy Counties Initiative
NACo’s Healthy Counties Initiative creates and sustains healthy counties by supporting collaboration and sharing evidence-informed approaches to pressing health issues.
NACo EDGE Solutions
Mental Health First Aid
Mental Health First Aid is a skills-based training administered by the National Council for Mental Wellbeing.
