Too often, people experiencing a mental health crisis do not receive a mental health response. Instead, people in crisis often encounter law enforcement and crowded emergency rooms rather than a mental health professional. Since 2015, 1 in 5 fatal police shootings have involved a person in a mental health crisis. This issue brief highlights state legislation passed in 2023 that works to reimagine the mental health crisis response system, and includes policy recommendations that may be implemented in states across the country within the following key categories:
- 988 Monthly Phone Fee/Sustainable Funding
- Crisis Response Appropriations
- Insurance Coverage of Crisis Care
- 988 and Crisis System Study
This brief is the third in a larger series – NAMI’s 2023 State Legislation Issue Brief Series – which examines new mental health laws from 2023 addressing criminal justice, access to care, and youth mental health. Read NAMI Trends in State Policy: 988 and Reimagining Crisis Response.
