Strengthening Mental Health in Our Communities Act of 2014
A BILL
To maximize the access of individuals with mental illness to community-based services, to strengthen the impact of such services, and for other purposes.
Sec. 2 Purpose
The purposes of this Act are—
to improve the responsiveness, coordination, accountability, accessibility, and integration of person-centered behavioral health services to provide timely and appropriate help to individuals, families, and communities;
to reduce mental health crises, homelessness, and incarceration by strengthening community-based services, including early intervention, outreach, engagement, prevention, crisis support, rehabilitation, and peer-run services for persons of all ages;
to ensure that all Americans with mental illnesses and their families can—
gain access to evidence-based and emerging best practices based on the values and principles of trauma-informed care and mental health recovery, delivered in a culturally and linguistically competent manner; and
fully participate in the most integrated settings within their chosen communities;
to develop an integrated behavioral health workforce through improved training and education, recruitment, and retention to meet the needs of all communities and populations;
to increase mental health awareness and reduce stigma and discrimination through mental health training, education, and literacy; and
to ensure the full implementation and enforcement of mental health parity for all Americans.