Financial Assistance

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) should issue guidance to hospitals on their obligations under the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act (EMTALA) to stabilize and treat individuals with a substance use disorder (SUD), and Congress should provide financial resources to incentivize hospitals to hire appropriate staff for their emergency departments[1]

Congress should ensure that both Medicare and all state Medicaid programs cover psychosocial rehabilitation support services such as respite centers and clubhouses, which offer individuals with mental health conditions (usually a serious mental illness) a physical place where they can engage in a therapeutic community. The Department of Health and Human Services should ensure that psychosocial rehabilitation support services are covered under the Affordable Care Act’s Essential Health Benefits requirement for individual and small group health plans (i.e., Qualified Health Plans).

Congress should utilize tax credits and grant programs to fund new (or existing) newborn intensive care units in all hospitals to provide specialized care for infants with neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS) and ensure mothers and their children remain in close proximity with each other after birth.[1]

Congress should pass the Moms Matter Act, which establishes grant programs to address maternal mental health conditions and substance use disorders during or after pregnancy, with a focus on racial and ethnic minority groups.[1][2][3]

Congress should expand funding the eligibility criteria for national and state loan repayment programs to include bachelor-level social workers, health and human services providers, and certified drug and alcohol counselors, while also expanding service delivery location sites to include more home, school, and community-based settings.[1]

Congress should require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to Congress on current reimbursement rates paid for mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) services by Medicare, Medicaid, individual and group health plans, and other types of health coverage, both in and out of network. Rates should be assessed for their sufficiency to increase in the supply of participating providers and pipeline for clinicians entering MH/SUD fields, as well as compared to physical health reimbursement.[1]