Public Policy Reports

Overview One in five adults in the U.S. experiences a mental health condition, but less than half receive treatment. This alone speaks to the need for major changes in mental health policy to ensure people get the help they need, when they need it. Fortunately, advancements in mental health policy are happening, and nowhere is this more true […]

The Affordable Care Act has had an enormous impact on people with mental illness. This issue brief, What the Affordable Care Act Has Meant for People with Mental Health Conditions — And What Could be Lost, highlights the importance of the ACA and illustrates why we can’t go back to a time when health coverage for […]

Many communities are committed to diverting people with mental illness away from the criminal justice system. However, in order to do so, communities need effective mental health services, such as outpatient, inpatient and crisis care. This publication is meant to help communities identify the gaps and opportunities in their existing system that will enhance their […]

There is a national debate underway about the regulation of health insurers and insurance benefit standards. To reduce regulatory burdens, the Executive Branch enacted changes that weaken essential health benefit requirements, which require coverage of mental health and substance use services. The Executive Branch has also proposed regulations that will expand the availability of health […]

Each year millions of Americans with mental illness struggle to find mental health care. Nearly half of the 60 million adults and children living with mental health conditions in the United States go without any treatment. People who seek treatment must navigate a fragmented and costly system full of obstacles. As a result, many people […]

With the passage of the federal parity law, along with the Affordable Care Act and the decision by 32 states (including the District of Columbia) to expand Medicaid, Americans should have better access to mental health care than at any time in history.  Yet, people with mental health conditions who have insurance still struggle to […]

As an organization of individuals with mental health conditions and their families, NAMI knows that the U.S. system of mental health care is failing to engage many people who seek help. The facts say it all: many people who seek mental health care drop out. 70% that drop out do so after their first or second […]

In 2013, the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Community Oriented Policing Services reached out to NAMI to provide assistance to the Newtown (Conn.) Police Department in the aftermath of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Chief Kehoe asked NAMI to write a guidebook for chiefs on how to safeguard officer mental health in the […]

For too long, people who need mental health and substance use care have been subjected to pervasive discrimination in health insurance. Health plans for people with pre-existing mental illness, if they included mental health benefits at all, have historically been more expensive, with limited benefits and significant administrative hurdles to obtaining care. Achieving true equity […]

NAMI’s report, State Mental Health Legislation: Trends, Themes and Effective Practices, highlights the good and bad news in states’ approaches to mental health. The good news is that in 2015, 35 states adopted one or more measures that NAMI applauds with a Gold Star—and five states passed model legislation. The bad news is that, at a time […]