HR 42
Page 1
Date of Hearing: May 19, 2025
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON RULES
Blanca Pacheco, Chair
HR 42 (Elhawary) – As Introduced May 15, 2025
SUBJECT: Behavioral Health Awareness Month.
SUMMARY: Recognizes May 2025 as Behavioral Health Awareness Month in California to
enhance public awareness of behavioral health needs across the lifespan. Specifically, this
resolution makes the following legislative findings:
1) Mental illness is a health condition that impacts our emotional, psychological, and social
well-being, and affects how an individual thinks, feels, and acts, including how they handle
stress, relate to others, and make choices. Substance use disorder is the persistent use of
drugs despite substantial harm and adverse consequences to self and others.
2) Behavioral health is the term that recognizes the combination of mental illness and substance
use disorder that often impact an individual simultaneously.
3) Nearly 20 percent of children and youth between 3 and 17 years of age, inclusive, in the
United States develop a mental, emotional, developmental, or substance use disorder each
year.
4) In California, there are nearly 45,000 children in the foster care system, and many youth still
exit care without the support and guidance they need to successfully transition out of the
system.
5) An estimated 70 percent of all youth in the juvenile justice system have at least one mental
health condition and at least 20 percent live with severe mental illness that is usually
undiagnosed, misdiagnosed, untreated, or ineffectively treated, thus leaving those detained in
the juvenile justice system in a vulnerable condition.
6) An estimated 60 percent of youth in juvenile facilities met criteria for substance use disorder
in the year before entering custody.
7) Adults and older adults living with mental illness or substance use disorders often experience
additional barriers to care, including stigma, social isolation, under-diagnosis, and
fragmented access to behavioral health services.
8) Behavioral health challenges among adults—particularly those experiencing homelessness,
unemployment, or chronic illness—can lead to compounded health disparities and require
comprehensive, integrated care.
9) The integration of behavioral health care, including mental health and substance use
treatment, into primary care, housing, and aging services is critical to meeting the needs of
California’s diverse and growing adult and older adult populations.
10) Older adults are at increased risk for co-occurring behavioral health conditions such as
depression, anxiety, and substance use disorders due to life transitions, grief, cognitive
decline, and chronic medical conditions.
 HR 42
Page 2
11) There is a need to improve public awareness of mental illness and to strengthen local and
national awareness of brain diseases so that all people with mental illness may receive
adequate and appropriate treatment that will result in their becoming fully functioning
members of society.
12) There is a need to reduce the stigma around mental illness and substance use disorder, so that
all people with a mental illness are encouraged to reach out to their community and seek
treatment without fear of isolation and judgment.
13) Ensuring all Californians have meaningful, timely, and equitable access to behavioral health
care is essential to the overall health, safety, and well-being of our communities and the state
as a whole. A strong behavioral health workforce is essential to ensure Californians can
access the care they need.
FISCAL EFFECT: This resolution is keyed non-fiscal by Legislative Counsel.
REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:
Support
None on file
Opposition
None on file
Analysis Prepared by: Michael Erke / RLS. / (916) 319-2800