WASHINGTON, DC -- After helping to include a $15 million appropriation for Mental Health First Aid in the FY 2016 Omnibus spending bill, U.S. Senator Jack Reed is encouraging more Rhode Islanders to take part in this public education and awareness program.

The National Council for Behavioral Health, in partnership with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, is working to provide Mental Health First Aid training across the United States.  They recently launched the “Be 1 in a Million” campaign to train 1 million people in Mental Health First Aid.  The goal of the campaign is to train people as “first aiders” to recognize and respond when someone is experiencing a mental health crisis or substance abuse emergency.  It is modeled after similar public health efforts aimed at teaching Americans how to safely administer life-saving first aid, CPR, or AED (automated external defibrillator) assistance.

“Mental health is just as important as physical health.  But too many people who have a treatable mental illness or experience mental health issues or addiction don’t get the help they need.  This campaign seeks to change that by empowering people to recognize the symptoms and reach out to those in need and refer them to the right services,” said Reed, a cosponsor of the Mental Health First Act of 2015.  Provisions of this legislation were approved by the Senate on December 18, 2015 and will help fund mental health awareness training grants for communities across the country.  “If we can get more Rhode Islanders to recognize signs and symptoms of mental illnesses and addiction, then we can reach more people who need help before it is too late.  Ultimately, improving mental health first aid training will improve understanding, reduce stigma, and help save lives.”

Rhode Islanders wishing to get trained or learn more about the program may visit: www.mentalhealthfirstaid.org to sign up for a class near their community.

The courses are open to people from all backgrounds, not just health-care professionals.  The National Council for Behavioral Health notes that already more than 500,000 people, including educators, law enforcement officials, and first responders, and even First Lady Michelle Obama, have taken mental health first aid training courses. 

According to the Rhode Island Council of Community Mental Health Organizations (RICCMHO), mental illness is more common than cancer, diabetes, and heart disease and drains our national economy of more than $80 billion each year, in lost wages and decreased productivity – accounting for about 15% of the total economic burden of all disease.

Senator Reed is working on a new bipartisan bill with U.S. Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) and Roy Blunt (R-MO) that will soon be introduced to increase funding for community mental health clinics.  The bill would provide about $1.7 billion in federal funding to expand a trial program for 24 states -- including Rhode Island -- to have new community mental health clinics that can offer services such as 24-hour crisis psychiatric care.

Overall, Senator Reed helped include $3.8 billion in the FY 2016 Omnibus for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in 2016.  The 2014 SAMHSA Behavioral Health Barometer for Rhode Island notes that about 45,000 adults (5.5% of all adults) in Rhode Island suffered from a serious mental illness per year in 2009–2013.  Serious mental illnesses include depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder, and other mental disorders that cause serious impairment.  The reports found that in 2014, there were an estimated 9.8 million adults (4.1% of the national population age 18 and up) who experienced a serious mental illness in the past year.

In addition to providing funds for mental health first aid training, before the Senate adjourned in December it also approved a version of Senator Reed’s bipartisan Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act Reauthorization as part of the Mental Health Awareness and Improvement Act.  Reed’s legislation will help promote the development of statewide strategies for suicide early intervention and prevention.  It will also provide federal funding for competitive grants to help states, colleges, universities, and tribes improve mental and behavioral health counseling services.  Overall, the bill authorizes the federal government to award up to $30 million annually to help states and non-profit institutions prevent youth suicide.

In a 2015 study published online by JAMA Psychiatry, researchers found that U.S. counties that implemented Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Suicide Prevention Program activities had lower rates of suicide attempts among young people ages 16 to 23 than counties that did not.

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