Behavioral health crisis is an emergency. Individuals experiencing behavioral health crises need access to timely and effective crisis intervention services. Crisis services, including 988 call services, mobile crisis team response, behavioral health crisis walk-in and stabilization services, offer timely access to life-saving behavioral health interventions and connect individuals to the effective treatment and recovery resources. Comprehensive and integrated crisis services systems improve outcomes for individuals experiencing behavioral health crisis while reducing:

• Emergency Department overcrowding and boarding issues.
• Overdependence on restrictive longer-term inpatient placements
• Overuse of Law Enforcement and incarceration

 
Pennsylvania is making significant strides in strengthening its behavioral health crisis system, including the implementation of the 988 Lifeline, the expansion of mobile crisis response teams, the development of crisis walk-in centers and crisis stabilization units. However, more effort is needed to raise awareness of services, develop a pathway to expand and financially sustain needed services statewide. I am proposing a resolution directing the Joint State Government Commission to undertake a comprehensive study examining the current crisis services utilization, funding and reimbursement mechanisms for behavioral health crisis services provided within this Commonwealth and develop recommendations for expanding and financially sustaining access to crisis services.
 
By starting with studying the current crisis system I hope, we as policymakers, can begin to truly understand the complexity of what it will take to ensure that crisis services are available for all Pennsylvania residents whenever and wherever needed.