The Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Wednesday $480.5 million in grants for 54 projects that will improve the mental health infrastructure for California's youth and children.
The historic investment will provide grant funding to build new and expand existing facilities that serve children, youth, transition-age youth, and perinatal individuals with mental health, substance abuse, and disorders.
“Too many Californians are struggling with mental illness and substance abuse. These funds will support critical mental health and substance use disorder treatment centers that are committed to serving the diverse range of children and youth covered by Medi-Cal,” Newsom said.
These projects will increase care, especially in less restrictive community settings, with community-based youth prevention and wellness centers, outpatient substance use disorder treatment, school-based health centers, and outpatient community mental health clinics.
The projects include $57.4 million for a psychiatric acute care hospital. In Los Angeles, the Kedren South Psychiatric Intensive Care Hospital and Children's Village will receive funding for a 36-bed psychiatric acute care hospital.
Additionally, $27.6 million will be available to address substance use disorder at Boost Slots in Orange County. The Orange County Health Care Agency will expand the adolescent residential treatment facility for youth with substance use disorder (SUD) with 32 beds, residential perinatal SUD with 24 beds, and a community-based outpatient mental health clinic with 2,626 spaces.
Additionally, $9.3 million to fund an adult residential treatment facility in Watsonville. The facility will serve Californians suffering from SUD, with seven beds and 106 outpatient treatment spaces.
Also, $7.9 million to fund a Community Outpatient Mental Health Clinic in Hoopa. Administered by the Yurok Youth Center, the grant funds 300 clinic slots, a 1,450-seater community youth prevention and wellness center, 27-seater SUD outpatient treatment, and a 50-seater school-based health center.
“With significant and innovative state and federal investments in homelessness, health care delivery reform, and the social safety net, California is addressing historic gaps to meet the growing demand for services and supports for children and youth across the state,” said Dr. Mark Ghaly, Secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency.
For her part, Michelle Baass, Director of the California Department of Health Care and Services (DHCS), said that “these investments offer a unique opportunity to expand new capacity and address gaps in needs assessment within California’s behavioral health continuum.”
In California, rates of serious mental illness and substance use disorders are highest for people ages 18 to 25, and rates of children and youth experiencing behavioral health issues, youth emergency department visits for mental health issues, and youth suicides continue to rise.
Research shows that half of all lifetime diagnosable mental illnesses begin by age 14, three-quarters begin by age 24, and most substance use begins in adolescence, emphasizing the need to strengthen prevention and early identification and intervention services.
Additionally, in the state, 13 percent of children ages 3 to 17 reported having at least one mental health, emotional, developmental, or behavioral problem, and 8 percent of children have a serious emotional disturbance that limits participation in daily activity.
Notably, DHCS is releasing $2.1 billion through six rounds of grants targeting various gaps in the state’s behavioral health facility infrastructure.
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