Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin plans to implement a six-pillar plan to address ongoing mental health issues, CBS19 News reported Dec. 14.
The pillars will involve law enforcement, support for mental health crises, substance abuse care, a behavioral health team and improvements on service delivery. The initiative has been coined "Right Help, Right Now."
The administration will invest $230 million into improving behavioral health systems across the state, $20 million of which will go toward 30 new mobile crisis teams. Another $58 million will be distributed to state mental health crisis receiving and stabilization centers, and $15 million will go toward school mental health programs.
"We are facing a behavioral health crisis across Virginia and the United States," Mr. Youngkin said. "The three-year 'Right Help, Right Now' vision to revolutionize our behavioral health delivery system starts with a giant leap forward offered in my amended budget. … We incorporated best-in-class models of behavioral health from across the country. This is a top priority for my administration, and we will not stop until we have a system that delivers the 'Right Help, Right Now' to the people who need it most."