Senate Briefing held on the Impact of the States’ Economic Crisis
on America’s Public Mental Health Safety Net

On February 16, 2011 NASMHPD hosted a Senate briefing on the impact of the economic crisis on low income populations who are served by the public mental health system. Kevin Martone, NASMHPD President and Deputy Commissioner for New Jersey’s Department of Human Services, gave opening remarks and a PowerPoint presentation on NASMHPD’s nationwide survey showing that states have been forced to cut mental health care funding by $2.2 billion from FY09 through FY11. At the same time, almost 60% of states reported skyrocketing demand for community-based mental health care and crisis services. “These services are at the heart of every public mental health system in the country…and a means of keeping people with mental illness out of more expensive psychiatric hospitals, emergency rooms, nursing facilities, and jails,” stated Mr. Martone during his testimony.  

Further testimonies on how the budget cuts have impacted their organizations and access to mental health services were given by Sheilah Clay, CEO of Neighborhood Service Organization in Detroit, MI; Commander Shereece Fleming-Freeman, Central District—City of Detroit Police Department; Craig Knoll, Executive Director of Threshold Services in Silver Spring, MD; Susan Reed, Consumer of Mental Health Services; and U.S. Army retired Lt. Col. James (Jimmy) Walsh, President of NAMI Alabama.