On October 8, the Campaign for Healthy Minds, Healthy Kids held a virtual Community Speakout on mental and behavioral health advocacy, HMHK’s priorities, and what community members can do to help the cause.

In New York, our health system doesn’t have the capacity to treat the skyrocketing number of young people desperately in need of mental health support. Right now, children and youth have to get really sick to get help, and that help is too often delivered in emergency rooms and hospitals, rather than through the ongoing, high quality services they need to stay healthy. Providing quality care to children – particularly those with complex needs – requires close collaboration between parents and physicians, care coordinators and social workers, therapists and insurers, and so many others.