School mental health services funding

Chftracteristics and Funding of School Mental Health Services Study... 

FUNDING SCHOOL MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES WITHIN A SYSTEM OF CARE... 

Acknowledgments. This chapter was prepared in conjunction with work done by the Center for Mental Health in Schools at the University of California, Los Angeles, which is partially supported by funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, specifically from (1) the Office of Adolescent Health in the Maternal and Child Health Bmeau of the Health Resources and Services Administration and (2) from the Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. 

Schools/Healthy Students grant (funded by a consortium of federal agencies including the Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Education, and Department of Justice). Acosta s (2001) efforts highlight the five-point model for school mental health advocacy practice. 

In fact, there are reasons that may contribute to avoidance of expanded school mental health. Arguments about improved access to care were recently interpreted as expensive child-find efforts by an insurance company representative. Schools may fear that esmh services may end up on individual educational plans and thereby fall on the school district to fund. School-employed mental health professionals have expressed concerns that partnerships with outside agencies could reduce their roles. These economic and professional issues may serve to keep esmh marginally funded and positioned unless there are some important changes. 

Bundy, A., Wegener, V. (2000). Maximizing Medicaid funding to support health and mental health services for school-age children and youth Strategy brief. Tools for out-of-school time and community school initiatives, 1(5). Washington, DC The Finance Project. 

CCMHP is the current federal program providing coordinated, community-based, family-centered, cultmally competent, accessible, and least restrictive services for children and adolescents with serious emotional, behavioral, or mental disorders accompanied by functional impairment. Development of these systems of care is based on the premise that the mental health needs of children, adolescents, and their families can be met in their home, school, and community environments (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 1999). A variety of community agencies are involved, including mental health, child welfare, education, and juvenile justice. Funded service systems are tailored to the needs of individual children and adolescents and include evaluation and diagnosis. 

Examples of the programs coming from these recommendations include the expansion of behavioral health services in school-based health centers. The Office of School Health, with additional financial support from the isbhp, currently provides funding for 17 school-based health centers statewide, which serve over 40 schools. The New Mexico School Mental Health Awareness Project, also created... 

In many communities, the quantity and range of services they can provide is limited because of the way in which services are funded. Many communities provide school-based mental health services only to students requiring these services as part of their special education program. In other communities, clinicians work solely on a fee-for-service basis. Paired with large caseloads, fee-for-service reimbursement leaves little room to conduct evaluations with students who may not meet criteria for a psychiatric diagnosis (i.e., students who can be compensated). 

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