The children’s behavioral health system is fragile and struggles: with workforce shortages, long waits, and inadequate rates to sustain clinics, all contributing to a profound lack of capacity for children.

To begin to address this, and ensure children are able to access behavioral health services, we urge you to take the following steps in THIS BUDGET.

BUDGET AND LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES

• Restore $17.5 million in children’s behavioral health services to address the capacity crisis. This includes restoring the $7.5 million budgeted, but unspent in 2016-17 State Fiscal Year for new capacity and the $10 million budget but unspent funds for workforce readiness efforts. The children’s behavioral health system is facing significant challenges that must be addressed now and cannot wait until children’s behavioral health services transitions into managed care. This money should be restored and spent immediately for capacity expansion of existing children’s behavioral health services as an immediate practical effort to meet existing needs.
• Support extending APG rates until 2020, to provide system stability and address barriers to clinic solvency and support services for children.
• Support the creation of a $500 million Statewide Health Facilities Transformation Fund, but increase the floor from $30 million to $125 million for a set-aside to community-based providers.
• Reject the proposal to cut $50 million from NYC’s School Supportive Health Services.