Well Being Trust News and Resources July 2022

July 14, 2022

Well Being Trust: Translating Hope to Solutions

“If we are going to change the current trajectory of tragedy that causes so much preventable suffering and cost, it’s going to take all of us.”
Tyler Norris, MDiv, Chief Executive, Well Being Trust

Key wins for mental health

This past week, our nation witnessed the signage of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which while getting a great deal of attention for its gun safety measures, also provides an unprecedented level of investment in school mental health services:

$500 million to help schools hire and retain school mental health professionals.
$500 million for partnerships with higher education to build a pipeline of school mental health professionals.
$80 million to support the Pediatric Mental Health Care Access telehealth consultation program.
$240 million for Project AWARE grants for school-based mental health programs.

Advocates for gun safety, including families who have experienced loss, mental health advocates, and community leaders were invited to the White House for a celebration of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act on July 11. President Joe Biden is pictured above speaking at the event. Well Being Trust President Benjamin F. Miller, PsyD, is shown, (center); along with Former U.S. Representative Patrick Kennedy; Congresswoman Suzanne Bonamici, second to left; Bill Smith and Angela Kimball, both of Inseparable; and other attendees at the event.

Well Being Trust worked closely with Inseparable, the CEO Alliance for Mental Health , and other movement partners to inform and support the Act’s passage, bringing $1.3B in new funding to support youth mental health. And Well Being Trust leadership continues to stay engaged with the administration; with Dr. Benjamin Miller attending President Joe Biden’s signing ceremony at the White House on July 11 implementing the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.

Well Being Trust President Benjamin F. Miller was invited to attend the ceremony at the White House marking the signing of the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. He is pictured above with Bill Smith, founder, Inseparable, and Angela Kimball, Senior Vice President, Advocacy and Public Policy at Inseparable.

We were also honored to be invited to attend the White House and Congressional screening of Ken Burns Presents Hiding in Plain Sight: Youth Mental Illness in June. Well Being Trust Chief Executive Tyler Norris, MDiv, joined members of the CEO Alliance for Mental Health, co-founded by Well Being Trust, at the screening which follows the mental health journeys of 20-plus young Americans. The documentary premiered on PBS in June and is available on demand on PBS. First Lady Jill Biden and Speaker Nancy Pelosi provided opening remarks at screenings and expressed the urgency for our country to address the youth mental health crisis.

First Lady Jill Biden and Speaker Nancy Pelosi provided opening remarks at the White House and Congressional screening of a new documentary, Ken Burns Presents Hiding in Plain Sight: Youth Mental Illness. Well Being Trust Chief Executive Tyler Norris, MDiv, and NAMI CEO Dan Gillison, are shown above speaking at the White House screening.

Advancing the mental health and well-being movement

Alongside scores of partners, grantees, and caregivers, we’ve helped focus and grow the nationwide social movement for mental health and well-being -- while creating proof points of what works and delivering solution sets to help spread actions that can result in population-level outcomes. All we do is dedicated to clinical, community and cultural changes that can measurably transform the mental health of the nation and improve well-being for all.

Many of the new organizations and alliances that Well Being Trust helped to seed and germinate, now serve as essential scaffolding for the U.S. mental health and well-being movement, bringing key services and resources to families, organizations, communities, states and the nation at large. Examples include:

Inseparable – a powerful 501.c4 established in 2020 that is shaping mental health and addiction policy, and building political will at the local, state and federal level.
Mindful Philanthropy – bringing more resources to the field, while focusing investments on those with the greatest potential for population level impact.
WIN Network– One of the nation’s leading alliances of communities, CBO’s and NGO’s advancing intergenerational well-being and equity.
CEO Alliance for Mental Health– A powerful alliance of the leading mental health and addiction guilds, associations, networks and funders — advancing a Unified Vision and a seamless continuum of care, including 988.
Mental Health Data infrastructure – with increasingly granular, fresh data on mental health, addiction, and well-being.

State victories for mental health parity
We have also worked alongside partners across the nation to advance mental health parity.

“Watching the work of Inseparable, one of our key partners, has been inspiring," said Benjamin F. Miller, PsyD, president, Well Being Trust. "They have gone into six states and passed major legislation that will impact mental health for generations to come."

From Alabama to Alaska, Inseparable, a key movement partner focused on policy, has worked to make it easier for our youth to get access to critical mental health services. In Delaware, they helped drive three pieces of legislation, all awaiting the Governor’s signature, that bring more clinicians into schools, increase mental health education in schools, and requires health plans to cover an annual mental health and well-being check up.

Learn more: Read our latest news and updates
We invite you to learn more about Well Being Trust’s work to improve mental health and well-being as well as investments to support caregiver well-being, and to accelerate behavioral health innovations in our clinical and community settings.

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