By Rachel Bhagwat, Director of Policy NAMI Chicago
The State of Illinois and the General Assembly have been busy in the last few months, working to enhance the mental health and substance use treatment sectors in response to our society’s continued crisis.
Executive Branch
In the span of a few days in late March, Governor Pritzker announced several new behavioral health leaders and initiatives. First was the appointment of David T. Jones as Illinois’ first Chief Behavioral Health Officer, promoted from Director of DHS’s Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery (SUPR). Simultaneously, Pritzker announced a 2022 State Overdose Action Plan (SOAP) to increase outreach to those at risk of drug overdose, as well as coordinate with sheriffs and local health departments to reduce overdoses for people leaving jail.
Other advancements from the Executive Branch addressed the mental health of children and adolescents; an issue that was declared a nationwide public health crisis in October 2021. Governor Pritzker announced a new Children’s Behavioral Health Transformation Collaborative to increase cross-agency collaboration and charge the State to provide better holistic, wraparound support for children and families in need. Through December 2022, Chapin Hall’s Dr. Dana Weiner, PhD will serve as the Children’s Behavioral Health Transformation Director.
State Budget & Legislation
Illinois’ budget for FY23, signed by the Governor, included a $345 million increase in funding for behavioral health programs in SUPR and the Division of Mental Health (DMH). One notable inclusion was $10 million for the Housing is Recovery Pilot, which will fund more supportive housing units for people experiencing homelessness who have serious mental illness or substance use disorders, and tend to cycle through hospitals and jails.
Several bills passed this legislative session are relevant to mental health in the court system. For example, the Mental Health Inpatient Facility Access Act
(HB1592) requires DMH to create a strategic plan to re-imagine the forensic mental health system, such as the use of state-operated psychiatric hospitals and criminal court stakeholder training. The Treatment Court Statutes bill (SB2565) updates existing language to make it easier for problem-solving courts to work together, especially for people with co-occurring mental health and substance use disorders. It also creates the possibility of building peer support programs in these courts.
Behavioral Health Workforce Initiatives
Illinois’ behavioral health sector is facing alarming workforce shortages, as demand skyrockets and pay remains low. This spring, the State approved $170 million of permanent Medicaid reimbursement rate increases for mental health and substance use services. This is a life raft for community providers who serve mostly Medicaid-funded clients, empowering them to pay competitively and keep their doors open. Illinois is also investing in the peer workforce through new initiatives like CRSS Success, which grant-funds programs at 11 colleges and universities for individuals to become credentialed as peer behavioral health professionals.