State legislature reaches budget deal, calls for investments in mental health

March 31, 2016

The Washington State Legislature has reached agreement on a supplemental budget, bringing the 2016 state legislative session to a close. Overall, WSHA is very pleased with the results of this year’s session. The budget is very good for hospitals and health systems, provides significant new funding for mental health and makes no significant cuts to hospitals or health care. Additionally, important funding was provided to implement many of the WSHA-supported policy bills.

Mental health was WSHA’s top budget priority, and the legislature makes significant new investments in mental health services, focusing in particular on stabilizing the state’s psychiatric hospitals. Regarding mental health, the budget calls for about $40 million in state mental health spending.

Thank you to all our members who were so engaged this session. Your testimony, advocacy and relationships with your legislators are invaluable. It is an honor to represent you and create the policy framework to allow you to deliver high-quality care to your communities. Click here to read more in this week’s edition of Inside Olympia. (Cassie Sauer)

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