Maryland Department of Health and Coalition Announce Partnership to Enhance Public Behavioral Health System for Children and Youth

The Maryland Department of Health, in collaboration with the Maryland Coalition of Families and Manatt Health, has announced a new partnership to develop recommendations and a roadmap for improving the state’s public behavioral health system. This initiative aims to address the needs of Maryland’s children, youth, and families by implementing crucial improvements and investments in crisis services and school-based initiatives. Despite these efforts, there are still significant gaps in care for some children and youth, highlighting the importance of this partnership.

Over the next few months, the Department, Maryland Coalition of Families, and Manatt Health will conduct a current state assessment, develop an internal report, and establish a detailed roadmap with proposed policy changes and action steps to enhance behavioral health care for children and youth. This roadmap will encompass the entire continuum of care, from prevention to high-intensity services, and outline concrete implementation steps to translate policy recommendations into tangible outcomes.

The Maryland Coalition of Families plays a critical role in helping families and youth navigate the behavioral health system, with a presence in all 24 jurisdictions of the state. They have previously collaborated with the Department on coordinating family peer support services and other initiatives. Manatt Health, a national policy and strategy firm, brings expertise in addressing behavioral health crises among children and youth with complex conditions, having recently completed a national roadmap on this issue.

This partnership signals a commitment to improving behavioral health outcomes for Maryland’s youth