Governor Hochul Launches Student Loan Repayment Program to Expand Health Care Access for Medicaid Members

Governor Hochul on Tuesday announced the launch of the Health Care Access Loan Repayment (HEALR) program. Governor Hochul has been laser-focused on protecting health care access and reinforcing resources that will strengthen our health care workforce. Governor Hochul is launching a $48.3 million student loan repayment initiative designed to expand access to care for NYS Medicaid members and uninsured individuals across New York State. The HEALR program will provide significant financial incentives to health care professionals who commit to serving high-need populations, addressing critical workforce shortages while reducing barriers to essential health services in underserved communities. Read more here.

Governor Hochul Announces $43 Million to Expand Inpatient and Emergency Psychiatric Services for New Yorkers In Crisis

Governor Kathy Hochul on Wednesday announced the availability of funding to expand comprehensive psychiatric emergency programs and to increase inpatient capacity statewide. The state Office of Mental Health has made available $23 million to develop new or expand existing comprehensive psychiatric emergency programs – also known as CPEPs – in addition to $20 million to help community-based and psychiatric hospitals increase bed capacity. OMH is making $20 million in capital funding and $3 million in start-up funding available for new CPEPs to serve children or for existing adult programs to add capacity for youth. Existing programs can also apply for funding to increase the number of extended observation beds, improve unit safety, or expand the footprint of treatment, waiting or group activity areas. Read more here.

Meta, TikTok and YouTube Are On Trial Over Whether Their Apps Hurt Children

Social media apps have long been accused of being harmful to children. Now those claims will come before a jury for the first time in a trial kicking off Tuesday in a Los Angeles courtroom. A key question will be whether tech companies deliberately built their platforms to hook young users, contributing to a youth mental health crisis. The jury's decision could have big consequences for the tech industry and how children use social media. The case in California state court is the first of a wave of lawsuits headed for trial this year that have been brought against social media companies by more than 1,000 individual plaintiffs, hundreds of school districts and dozens of state attorneys general. It's drawing comparisons to the legal campaign against Big Tobacco in the 1990s, which accused cigarette makers of covering up what they knew about the harms of their products. Read more here.

Related: Snap settles social media addiction lawsuit ahead of trial

TikTok settles as social media giants face landmark trial over youth addiction claims

Reddit and TikTok - with the help of AI - are reshaping how researchers understand substance use

The ‘R-Word’ Returns, Dismaying Those Who Fought to Oust It

Late last month, a woman posted a photograph on social media of a purple hat she had knitted, while a black-and-white dog lounged on the carpet a few feet away. The cozy scene was accompanied by a single sentence: “This hat is an hour behind schedule thanks to influencer retards.” The proud knitter, Harmeet K. Dhillon, is also the assistant attorney general overseeing the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division. Her purview includes protecting the rights of people with intellectual disabilities by ensuring compliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act. For decades now, the “R-word” has been regarded as a slur against people with intellectual disabilities — a word to be avoided. Yet it has had a striking resurgence, in part because people in high-profile positions of power and influence have chosen to resurrect it, often with an air of defiance. Read more here.

SAMHSA Releases New 988 & 911 Publication

SAMHSA has released 988 & 911: Strengthening Crisis Response While Managing Risk and Liability, a new publication designed to help states, counties, Tribal nations, and local communities strengthen coordination between the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and 911 systems. While many communities have successfully shifted behavioral health crisis calls away from law enforcement and toward specialized mental health responses, concerns about liability and interagency roles have slowed progress elsewhere. This framework provides practical guidance to address those challenges, clarify responsibilities, reduce perceived risk, and build trust to support more effective and timely crisis response.

Related: When Suicidal Calls Come In, Who Answers? Georgia Crisis Line Response Rates Reveal Gaps

CSH Selects Pilot Projects to Address High Acuity Health Needs in Supportive Housing

Over the last five years, New York City’s supportive housing system has been stretched by a growing number of people experiencing homelessness who need more intensive, coordinated support to stay housed. More people are experiencing prolonged homelessness due to obstacles in accessing health care, housing, and community-based services. Many individuals entering or living in supportive housing are navigating complex trauma and health conditions, often without consistent access to coordinated and person-centered care. Supportive housing providers have seen a drastic rise in serious health challenges for their residents. At the same time, the population within supportive housing is aging. Older adults, age 50+, now represent the fastest-growing group of New Yorkers facing housing instability, with many entering homelessness and crisis systems for the first time. Providers are struggling to support aging residents who have lived with substance use disorder for decades, often experiencing cognitive decline and aging issues nearly 20 years earlier than those who have never been homeless. Read more here.

For New Yorkers Battling Addiction, Art Offers a Road to Recovery

One too many Thursday gallery crawls and opening-night parties in the Lower East Side have left me trudging to work on Friday morning, still waking up on my feet. Instagram profiles including thirstygallerina (self-described as ‘NYC's most spirited gallery opening listing’ with 130,000 followers) reinforce art-world events as a vehicle to get wine-drunk on a weekday, and to partake in the glamorous nightlife of the young artists being catapulted towards stardom. I don’t believe that being an artist necessarily means you have a higher propensity for substance-use disorders, but there is undoubtedly a correlation between substance use and the creative lifestyle. Or maybe it’s the other way around: perhaps people who are disposed to alcohol or drugs are also drawn towards art. Art is obsessive, and offers an alternative to intoxicating substances in the search for answers. Art offers a way of coping with the world, a way of building community, and a way of healing. Read more here.

Tailored Support Strategy May Increase Screening for Unhealthy Alcohol Use

A tailored practice facilitation strategy was linked to increased adoption of evidence-based screening and counseling for unhealthy alcohol use among adults at small and medium-sized primary care practices, a quality improvement study suggested. Among 21 practices serving more than 54,000 adults in North Carolina, mean screening rates jumped from 17.4% per practice to 57.6% by the end of the second quarter of practice facilitation implementation (P<0.001), which included quality improvement coaching, electronic health record support, and training on screening and counseling. Of the 13.9% of patients who screened positive for unhealthy alcohol use, the share who received brief counseling increased from 0 to 32.3% by the end of the second quarter (P<0.001), the authors noted in JAMA Network Open. Unhealthy alcohol use ranks among the top three causes of preventable deaths in the U.S., yet less than one-third of patients who visit a primary care clinician ever discuss alcohol use, Jonas and team said. Read more here.

How Bad Are A.I. Delusions? We Asked People Treating Them.

Julia Sheffield, a psychologist who specializes in treating people with delusions, is difficult to rattle. But she was unnerved last summer when patients began telling her about their conversations with A.I. chatbots.

One woman, who had no history of mental illness, asked ChatGPT for advice on a major purchase she had been fretting about. After days of the bot validating her worries, she became convinced that businesses were colluding to have her investigated by the government. Another patient came to believe that a romantic crush was sending her secret spiritual messages. Yet another thought he had stumbled onto a world-changing invention. By the end of the year, Dr. Sheffield had seen seven such patients at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. Although she is accustomed to treating people with mental instability, Dr. Sheffield was disturbed that this new technology seemed to tip people from simply having eccentric thoughts into full-on delusions. “It was like the A.I. was partnering with them in expanding or reinforcing their unusual beliefs,” Dr. Sheffield said. Read more here.

ALBANY: Supportive housing development celebrates grand opening in Bethlehem

CATTARAUGUS: SBU receives $750,000 Cabrini grant to launch mobile health clinic

CAYUGA: Unity House Welcomes New CEO & COO

DUTCHESS: Dutchess Sheriff starting year 34 – seeks at least four more

ERIE: New York State Announces Opening of $9.6 Million Intensive Crisis Stabilization Center in Buffalo

ERIE: Study highlights link between hostile racism and suicide risk in young Black adults

ERIE: Catholic Charities publishes 2025 report to community

MONROE: Monroe County volunteers participate in annual Point in Time homelessness count

MONROE: URochester awarded $1M grant for inclusive programs

MONROE: East House Unveils 60th Anniversary Logo Celebrating Six Decades of Recovery and Housing in the Rochester Community

MONROE: Compeer Rochester recognized for mentoring efforts

NASSAU: Northwell opens psychedelic research center for mental health

NYC: NYC Health + Hospitals Announces New Simulation Training for Emergency Department Providers Encountering Patients with Opioid Use Disorder

NYC: Mamdani Administration Announces New Youth Clinics at NYC Health + Hospitals/Woodhull and Queens

NYC: IDCC Named Contracted SCN Partner Through Public Health Solutions’ WholeYouNYC

NYC: New 200-Bed Men’s Homeless Shelter Planned for First Avenue

NYC: NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County Launches Kings CARES Program for Survivors of Domestic and Gender-Based Violence

ONONDAGA: A tiny Central NY village is adding affordable housing without a fight: ‘I guess we’re different’

ST. LAWRENCE: Crisis hotline marks one year under new management

TUG HILL REGION: Northern New York Community Foundation launches tri-county Grants for Good program

ULSTER: Ulster County now offering 24/7 behavioral, mental health support

Clear Pathways, Mathematica Release Report Evaluating Crisis Response Pilot

Cannabis legalization driving increases in marijuana use among U.S. adults with historically lower consumption rates

Foundation for Opioid Response Efforts and the Yale Program in Addiction Medicine Establish the National Methadone Access and Quality Commission

Fact Sheet: Pledges from Medicaid Technology Companies to Support Community Engagement Implementation and Related Medicaid System Improvements

Researchers at City University of New York (CUNY) Target Mental Health Diseases and Conditions

JAMA: National and State Societal Costs of Schizophrenia in the US in 2024

California: When Insurance Says No, Children Pay the Price

UPCOMING EVENTS & TRAININGS

Pathways to SUD Treatment & Recovery

January 29, 1 - 2 pm, SAMHSA

Addressing Fragmentation through Regional Case Conferencing: Lessons from Three States

January 29, 2 - 3 pm, Camden Coalition

Educator Café - School Mental Health & Resilience: An Action Guide

January 31, 3:30 - 4:30 pm, School Mental Health Resource Center

Transitional-Aged Youth (TAY) Services

January 22, 2 - 3 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing

CFRI Integrating SUD Prevention with Physical Health Care: Progress in States Webinar

January 28, 2 - 3 pm, SAMHSA/CFRI

Centering Families in Outpatient Treatment

January 29, 2 - 2:30 pm, NCSACW

Family Education Webinar - Supporting School Mental Health in 2026: A Conversation with the SMHRTCenter's New Director

January 29, 7 - 8 pm, SMHRTCenter

Data Management: Person-Directed Approaches and Perspectives

February 4, 1 - 2:30 pm, CSH

Strengthening Father Engagement to Improve Child and Family Outcomes

February 4, 2 - 3 pm, NCSACW

Introduction to Family Therapy with Adolescents

February 5, 12 - 2 pm, CTAC

Treating People who Use Meth or other Stimulants: Leveraging Contingency Management in Criminal Justice Settings

February 5, 2:30 - 4 pm, SAMHSA's GAINS Center

NACo Policy Insider Webinar Series: Understanding the Federal Landscape for Counties

February 5, 3 - 4 pm, NACo

Concern to Confidence: Strengthening 988 & 911 Coordination While Managing Risk and Liability

February 10, 2 - 3 pm, SAMHSA

Advancing Brain-Based Therapeutics to the Forefront of Addiction Care

February 10, 2 - 3 pm, Brain & Behavior Research Foundation

Navigating Ethical Boundaries: Decision Making for Peer Support Specialists and Addiction Counselors

February 11, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC

Ensuring People’s Rights, Choice, and Control in the Person-Centered Service Planning Process

February 11, 1:30 - 3 pm, CMS

Becoming a Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) Instructor

February 12, 2 - 3 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing

Toolkit for Trauma-Informed Care

February 12, 2 - 2:30 pm, NCSACW

NACo Policy Insider Webinar Series: Understanding the Federal Landscape for Counties

February 12, 3 - 4 pm, NACo

Workforce Solutions Jam Series: Extending the Behavioral Health Workforce - Training the Allied Workforce

February 17, 1 - 2 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing

Integration Under the Microscope: Proving Outcomes as Behavioral Health Enters a New Era of Accountability

February 17, 2 - 3 pm, Behavioral Health Business

Expanding Access to Community Health Workers in Rural Communities

February 18, 2 - 3:15 pm, Center for Health Care Strategies

Integrated Safety Planning (Suicide Safety Plans & Overdose Safety Plans)

February 19, 12:30 - 1:30 pm, Zero Overdose/Zero Suicide

Older Adults Behavioral Health Services

February 19, 2 - 3 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing

Peer-to-Peer Learning Session: Service and Support Considerations for Individuals with Co-occurring Mental Health Conditions and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Across the Crisis Continuum

February 23, 3 - 4 pm, SAMHSA

Process Addictions: Maladaptive Coping Across the Ages

February 25, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC

Getting Ready for Medicaid Work Requirements: Strategies for Supportive Housing Providers

February 26, 1 - 2 pm, CSH

Transforming Futures: Education, Law, and Youth Wellbeing - IN PERSON

February 27, 9:30 am - 3 pm, Albany Law School Government Law Center

Addressing Veteran Substance Use: Promoting Recovery Through Collaboration and Compassion

March 3, 2 - 3:30 pm, SAMHSA

Strengthening Helping Professionals: Ethics, Resilience, & Attachment-Informed Approaches

March 11, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC

Means Reduction Counseling and Overdose Prevention Strategies

March 12, 12:30 - 1:30 pm, Zero Overdose/Zero Suicide

Workforce Solutions Jam Series: Extending the Behavioral Health Workforce - Technology as an Extender

March 17, 1 - 2 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing

Understanding The Role of Toxic Shame in Substance Use Disorders

March 25, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC

Workforce Solutions Jam Series: Extending the Behavioral Health Workforce - Lived Experience as a Resource

April 21, 1 - 2 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing

GRANTS/FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA)

HRSA Health Workforce

Mother Cabrini Health Foundation

NY Division of Criminal Justice Services (DCJS)

NYS Grants Gateway

NY Health Foundation

OASAS Procurements

OMH Procurements

OMH Community Mental Health Loan Repayment Program

OPWDD Procurements

Rural Health Information Hub - New York

Better Grants Better Service (BGBS) | Rural Development (usda.gov)

SAMHSA Grants Dashboard

Veterans Affairs

CLMHD CALENDAR

February

Quarterly LGU Billing Staff Call

February 3: 11 am - 12 pm

CLMHD Executive Committee Meeting

February 4: 8 - 9 am

LGU Clinic Operators Call

February 10: 10 - 11 am

Addiction Services & Supports (ASR) Committee Meeting

February 12: 11 am - 12 pm

Mental Health Committee Meeting

February 12: 3 - 4 pm

CLMHD Office Closed - Presidents Day

February 16

Children & Families Committee Meeting

February 17: 12 - 1:30 pm

Membership Call

February 18: 9 - 10:30 am

Developmental Disabilities Committee Meeting

February 19: 1 - 2 pm