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Governor Hochul Receives National Award for Outstanding Leadership in Mental Health Policy
Governor Kathy Hochul was presented with a national award for her outstanding leadership in mental health policy, recognizing her efforts to expand access to life-saving care throughout New York State. Mental Health America presented her with the 2026 Governor’s Leadership Award, recognizing the ‘significant and sustained investments’ that have strengthened mental health systems across the state’s continuum of care. “Our ongoing investments into expanding access to care is providing renewed hope for New Yorkers who experience mental health issues,” Governor Hochul said. “With roughly $2 billion prioritized for this purpose, we have built up a system that is both responsive to the needs across our state and providing an example for others to follow nationally.” Governor Hochul’s award was announced virtually during Mental Health America’s Regional Policy Council meeting earlier this month. The Governor was presented with the award by Glenn Liebman, the Mental Health Association in New York State’s Chief Executive Officer. Read more here.
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New York State Lights State Landmarks Red, White and Gold to Honor Neurodiverse New Yorkers for National Autism Acceptance Month
April is National Autism Acceptance Month and New York is lighting up state buildings and other landmarks in red, white and gold to celebrate the strength, diversity, and pride of neurodiverse New Yorkers on April 2nd. This marks the first use of the new colors which were specifically chosen by New Yorkers with autism who did not feel that the national color, which is blue, adequately represented themselves as people who are living their lives as someone with autism. To kick off Autism Acceptance Month, the New York State Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) joined the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) at Jones Beach State Park on April 1 to raise New York State’s Neurodiversity Strength Flag and highlight recent accessibility upgrades made to the park under Governor Hochul’s leadership to make New York state more inclusive for people with disabilities. Read more here.
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Keeping New Yorkers Safe: Governor Hochul Previews Measures to Keep Youth From Sports Wagering and Protect New Yorkers From Gambling Harms
Governor Kathy Hochul today previewed sweeping measures that would prevent youth from gambling online, bar sports wagering operators from using AI to target bettors, establish activity triggers that would require operators to check on their patron, and establish other innovative efforts to protect New Yorkers who are legally able to gamble from potential harms. In her 2026 State of the State address, Governor Hochul directed the New York State Gaming Commission to take appropriate action to ensure young people are not downloading betting apps, creating accounts or using others’ accounts. Governor Hochul also directed the Commission to consider ways to use new technology to assist with identifying and helping those who may need gambling addiction assistance. Read more here.
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Attorney General James Co-Leads Bipartisan Coalition Urging Congress to Pass Legislation to Protect Communities from Illicit Xylazine
New York Attorney General Letitia James on Tuesday co-led a bipartisan coalition of 40 other attorneys general in calling on Congress to pass the Combating Illicit Xylazine Act. The bipartisan legislation would classify the dangerous animal tranquilizer xylazine – which is often mixed with fentanyl and other opioids – as a federal controlled substance to better protect communities and reduce opioid overdose deaths. In a letter to House and Senate leadership, Attorney General James and the coalition explain the dangers of illicit xylazine, which is causing an increasing number of opioid overdose deaths, and argue that federally classifying xylazine as a controlled substance is essential to helping law enforcement stop the spread of the drug. Read more here.
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A Secret History of Psychosis
When Cohen Miles-Rath walks into his father’s house, the history of his psychosis is right there in front of him. There is the place where he was standing when he received a cryptic message on his phone: The devil had entered his father’s body. There is the drawer where he spotted a knife whose handle was white — the color of God! There is the floor where, as they grappled over the knife, Cohen bit off part of his father’s earlobe, and blood spattered over both of them. There is the spot where, pinned to the floor, Cohen reached up with the knife and slashed wildly at his father’s throat. The violence lasted seconds but changed his whole life. With voices still racketing in his head, Cohen found himself in jail, facing charges of second-degree assault and criminal mischief, felonies punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Stunned and bleeding, his father had pressed charges, and taken out a restraining order against him. But Cohen hadn’t killed him. In the years that followed, he had the feeling that he had walked right up to the edge of a chasm. Read more here.
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Striking a Balance in Utilization Management: State Strategies for Medicaid Managed Care Accountability
Recent reports have heightened scrutiny of state oversight of utilization management (UM) in Medicaid managed care. In 2023, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General documented high and variable rates of prior authorization denials across state Medicaid programs and their contracted managed care organizations (MCOs). In 2024, the Government Accountability Office examined how Medicaid agencies oversee MCO UM for childhood preventive care services and found that state and federal oversight was not necessarily sufficient to ensure MCOs were making appropriate prior authorization decisions for Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnostic, and Treatment (EPSDT) services. Ongoing work from the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission (MACPAC) on Medicaid managed care also points to gaps in existing federal and state oversight activities and makes recommendations for improvement. Read more here.
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How One Family's Bipolar Disorder Experience Led to More Than $1 Billion for the Broad Institute
Jon Stanley considers himself fortunate among bipolar disorder patients. He eventually responded to the right drug cocktail after self-described “full-brained mania” almost 40 years ago left him naked in a New York City deli, convinced electricity coursed through the floor. Others face a longer road to medication. Severe mental health care like his was “more art than science,” the retired lawyer remembered being told back then. Doctors would rotate through medicines to “see if anything stuck.” The experience inspired his late parents, Ted and Vada Stanley, to donate hundreds of millions of dollars toward research into treatments for bipolar and schizophrenia during their lifetimes. Now, their philanthropic legacy continues with a renewed gift for a biomedical collaborative working to understand such diseases and identify therapies. The Stanley Family Foundation announced another $280 million for the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research at Broad Institute earlier this month, bringing its total contributions to the Massachusetts-based nonprofit over $1 billion. Read more here.
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Therapists Should Invite Dialogue About Use of AI for Advice and Support
When it comes to offering advice on personal matters, AI behaves like “a well-read friend who is sometimes confidently wrong,” warn researchers from New York University in a coauthored JAMA Psychiatry commentary. But in the newly published piece they argue that clinical therapists should aim to encourage discussion about their clients’ use of artificial intelligence, as people are using large language models in search of support at rapidly increasing rates. The coauthors of the article, Shaddy K. Saba of the NYU Silver School of Social Work and William B. Weeks of the NYU School of Global Public Health, also recommend that mental health clinicians acquire at least a basic literacy about AI to help them inform clients about the risks surrounding AI reliance and to understand its potential benefits. Read more here.
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UPCOMING EVENTS & TRAININGS
Pediatric Readiness in Rural Emergency Care: Simple Measures to Improve Outcomes for Children
April 2, 1 - 2 pm, EMSC
Evidence-based Treatment for Stimulant Use Disorder
April 7, 1 - 2 pm, Providers Clinical Support System
When Borderline Personality Disorder Isn't the Whole Picture: Treating Complex BPD Presentations Among Adults
April 8, 12 - 3 pm, CTAC
Rural Overdose Prevention: What State Policymakers Need to Know
April 9, 2 - 3 pm, National Conference of State Legislatures
Community-Informed Justice Diversion and Care
April 14, 3 - 4:30 pm, NAMI
Building an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) in an OTP Setting: Adapting to the Expanding ASAM Criteria 4th Edition
April 15, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC
Becoming a MHFA Instructor
April 16, 2 - 3 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing
Accelerating Reentry: Recidivism Data & A New Roadmap for Success
April 16, 2 - 3:30 pm, SAMHSA's GAINS Center
New York's Healthcare System in the Face of Federal Uncertainty
April 20, 12 - 1 pm, Albany Law School
Brain Injury Treatment: Psychopharmacology & Medical Interventions
April 21, 10 - 11 am, DOH/OMH/OASAS
Workforce Solutions Jam: Extending the Behavioral Health Workforce - Lived Experience as a Resource
April 21, 1 - 2 pm, National Council for Mental Wellbeing
Stronger Together: Elevating the Family Peer Role in Multidisciplinary Teams Part 1: Clarity in Roles, Strengthening Collaboration
April 22, 10 - 11:30 am, CTAC
What to Know About H.R.1 and Immigration Restrictions
April 22, 1 - 2 pm, Corporation for Supportive Housing
An Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Young Children: Part I
April 22, 1 - 2:30 pm, TTAC
New Insights on Veterans' Health in New York State
April 23, 12:30 - 1 pm, NY Health Foundation
Ethical Issues and Best Practices in Substance Use Disorder Treatment for Clinical Supervisors, Counselors, and Interns
April 29, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC
From Data to Dollars: Using American Community Survey Data to Strengthen Grant Proposals
April 29, 2 - 3 pm,
An Introduction to Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Young Children: Part II
April 30, 11:30 am - 1 pm, TTAC
Stronger Together: Elevating the Family Peer Role in Multidisciplinary Teams Part 2: Strength Based Collaboration
May 6, 3 - 4:30 pm, CTAC
9th Annual Older Adult Mental Health Awareness Day Symposium
May 7, 10 am - 5 pm, National Council on Aging
Supporting Individuals Engaged in Opioid Use Disorder Treatment for Peers
May 13, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC
Brain Injury: Practical Strategies for Engagement
May 19, 10 - 11 am, DOH/OMH/OASAS
Beyond Dual Diagnosis: Understanding the Relationship Between Personality Disorders and Substance Use Disorders Among Adults
June 10, 12 - 1:30 pm, CTAC
Essential Clinical and Peer Supervision Practices in Substance Use Disorder Services
June 17, 12 - 1:30 pm, NAADAC
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CLMHD CALENDAR
April
Addiction Services & Recovery Committee Meeting
April 9: 11 am - 12 pm
Mental Health Committee Meeting
April 9: 3 - 4 pm
LGU Clinic Operators Call
April 14: 10 - 11 am
Membership Call
April 15: 9 - 10:30 am
Developmental Disabilities Committee Meeting
April 16: 1 - 2 pm
Children & Families Committee Meeting
April 21: 12 - 1:30 pm
May
LGU Clinic Operators Call
May 5: 10 - 11 am
Executive Committee Meeting
May 6: 8 - 9 am
CLMHD Spring Full Membership Meeting
May 11 - 13, Albany, NY
Addiction Services & Recovery Committee Meeting
May 14: 11 am - 12 pm
Mental Health Committee Meeting
May 14: 3 - 4 pm
Children & Families Committee Meeting
May 19: 12 - 1:30 pm
Membership Call
May 20: 9 - 10:30 am
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