Workplace Mental Health

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) should clarify its May 2023 guidance on school Medicaid is not meant to supersede allowable Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) exceptions. The Department of Education (DOE) should issue guidance that clarifies that for the purposes of audits, school Medicaid is considered an education program and local education agencies are free to release information to auditors. Absent action from CMS, Congress should ​update the FERPA statute to allow for school Medicaid exceptions.

Congress should pass the Healthy Families Act,[1] which would ensure paid sick leave, and the Family and Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act,[2] which would ensure twelve weeks of family or medical leave for workers.[3]

Federal entities that have oversight of agencies with essential workers, such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, should include resources, funding, and guidance for mental health, emotional stress, and trauma support in Continuity of Operations Plans.[1]

Congress should pass the Farmers First Act of 2023 to reauthorize the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network (FRSAN), which would increase funding for the program, authorizing $15 million per year for the program for the next five years, up from $10 million.[1]

Congress should pass the “Fighting Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Act,” which would require the Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Community-Oriented Policing Services to report on proposed programs to make evidence-based treatments and preventive care available to police, fire, emergency medical and 911 personnel who experience job-related post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or acute stress disorder.[1][2]

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) should develop a national standard on psychological health and safety in the workplace — similar to physical health and safety standards — to help organizations achieve measurable improvement in the psychological health of employees.[1]