May is National Mental Health Awareness Month!

 

Mental Health Awareness Month (also referred to as Mental Health Month) has been observed in May in the U.S. since 1949. It is observed with media, local events, and film screenings. The theme "Turn Awareness into Action" was chosen for 2025 with the goal of celebrating “the progress we’ve made in recognizing the importance of mental health - and challenging us to turn understanding into meaningful steps toward change." The Month was presidentially proclaimed on May 5, 2025.

Mental Health Awareness Month was started by Mental Health America (MHA) (then known as the National Association for Mental Health). Each year in mid-March MHA releases a toolkit of materials to guide preparation for outreach activities during Mental Health Awareness Month. During the month, MHA, its affiliates, and other organizations interested in mental health conduct a number of activities which are based on a different theme each year. The Mental Health Month ribbon is green, symbolizing Hope, strength, and emotional support for those affected by mental illness.

MHA’s National Prevention and Screening Program is a collection of free, anonymous and clinically validated online screening tools, with 11 tests in English and two in Spanish. People who complete a screening test are immediately connected with resources to support their mental health journeys. Since its 2014 beginning, over 32 million people have taken a screen to check on their mental health concerns. It is the nation’s largest ongoing, real-time mental health early identification program.

The purpose of the Month is to raise awareness and educate the public about: mental illnesses, such as the 18.1% of Americans who suffer from depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder; the realities of living with these conditions; and strategies for attaining mental health and wellness. It also aims to draw attention to suicide, which can be precipitated by some mental illnesses. Additionally, the Month strives to reduce the stigma (negative attitudes and misconceptions) that surrounds mental illnesses. The month came about by presidential proclamation.

In addition to MHA, many other similar organizations choose to host awareness observances that coincide with Mental Health Awareness month. National Children's Mental Health Awareness Day is one such campaign. This event is sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in partnership with other non-profit and advocacy organizations.

Other months and weeks throughout the year are designated to raise awareness around specific mental health conditions or the mental health of different demographic groups - such as Minority Mental Health Month (July), sometimes referred to as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) Mental Health Awareness Month; Mental Illness Awareness Week (Sunday, October 5, 2025 - Saturday, October 11, 2025); National Depression Screening Day (October 10), etc.

Remember that mental illnesses can affect anyone, regardless of their background or circumstances. No person should have to face these challenges alone. Recognizing the signs, encouraging open dialogue, and showing compassion are essential steps in addressing mental health challenges and supporting those who face them.

Mental Health Legislation Introduced to Increase Community-Based Services

Innovative Mental Health Legislation would Increase Community-Based Services for Adults with Mental Health Disabilities

At the Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law’s June 22, 2023 event celebrating the 24th anniversary of the decision in Olmstead v. L.C. (Lois Curtis), it was announced that New York’s Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and Congressman Daniel Goldman (D-NY-10) have proposed the “Strengthening Medicaid for Serious Mental Illness Act.” Read the press release here.

The Act would provide desperately needed mental health support to the 14 million adults in the U.S. living with a serious mental illness (SMI), such as schizophrenia, bipolar illness, and major depressive disorder. Too many individuals living with SMI are stuck in a devastating cycle moving between hospitals, jails, and housing instability due to lack of access to community-based treatment. In 2021, over 1/3 of individuals with SMI did not receive any form of mental health treatment. In New York City, a number of subway deaths have highlighted the need for access to intense and immediate mental health support. This bill creates a new package of services under Medicaid targeted specifically to individuals living with SMI, sets a national standard for SMI care, and incentivizes states to provide intensive community-based services to treat SMI.

The Bazelon Center helped shape this legislation and strongly supports the “Strengthening Medicaid for Serious Mental Illness Act,” a critical improvement to the Medicaid program. It also has been endorsed by the National Health Law Program.  The legislation, introduced on the 24th anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Olmstead v. L.C. (Lois Curtis), will incentivize states to provide a robust array of intensive community-based services for adults with mental health disabilities. These services - including Assertive Community Treatment (ACT), housing-related services, supported employment, peer support services, and mobile crisis services - have been proven to help individuals with disabilities live successfully in their own homes and communities. The services help people avoid unnecessary institutionalization in hospitals and other facilities, which under Olmstead constitutes disability-based discrimination. This bill will help states comply with their legal obligations and save taxpayer dollars that would otherwise pay for expensive institutional care. 

These services – including housing-related services, supported employment, peer support services, ACT, and mobile crisis services–have been proven to help individuals with disabilities live successfully in their own homes and communities and avoid unnecessary institutionalization in hospitals and other facilities, which under Olmstead v. L.C. constitutes disability-based discrimination.

Specifically, the Strengthening Medicaid for Serious Mental Illness Act would:

1.      Create a new waiver program granting Medicaid authority to provide states with an option to offer a package of services targeted specifically to individuals with SMI. The package would include:

• Assertive community treatment, an evidence-based, highly individualized team-based service designed to support adults with the most intensive mental health needs;
• Supported employment to help individuals get and keep a job;
• Peer support services from individuals who have lived or living experiences with mental health conditions;
• Mobile crisis intervention teams that can help de-escalate situations and link individuals to other community-based services;
• Intensive case management; and
• Housing-related activities and services to support individuals with transitioning to and maintaining housing.

2.      Require states to adhere to certain standards, like tracking disparities in treatment, to ensure services are delivered with care to all in need.

3.      Create a tiered Federal Medical Assistance Percentage (FMAP) increase to incentivize states to provide intensive community-based services to individuals with SMI. This means that states could receive an increase up to 25% in funds allocated by the federal government for their Medicaid programs.

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June 2023 Monthly Briefing, Judge David L. Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, 2023.

Read the June 22, 2023 Press Release.

Read the June 22, 2023 NHeLP release.