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Children’s mental‑health advocates warn of proposed DMH cuts, boarding and risks to LGBTQ‑affirming inpatient capacity
Summary
Children’s mental‑health organizations and behavioral‑health providers told the committee that proposed cuts to Department of Mental Health lines and to child/adolescent services could worsen boarding, reduce outpatient and school‑based supports, and endanger specialized inpatient care for LGBTQ youth.
Representatives from the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health, the Children’s Mental Health Campaign and related advocacy organizations told the Joint Committee on Public Health that behavioral and children’s mental health remains a top crisis for the Commonwealth and that recent budget proposals could deepen gaps.
Jessica LaRochelle and Kate Alicante of MAMH told the committee that community‑based services, school‑based supports and implementation of the statewide behavioral‑health roadmap are priorities. They described collaborative care, school‑community partnerships and the expansion of community behavioral health centers as key strategies to reduce emergency and hospital demand.
Speakers from the Children's Mental Health Campaign said proposed cuts (the testimony referenced a $24 million reduction in DMH child and adolescent lines) would be damaging. Witnesses described pediatric psychiatric boarding in emergency departments as a “canary in the coal mine” that indicates insufficient community‑based capacity. They highlighted that specialized inpatient beds appropriate for gender‑diverse and transgender youth are rare and said proposed closures of inpatient units risked eliminating the only facility in the Commonwealth equipped to provide private accommodations and specialized care for LGBTQ adolescents.
Health law advocates (MAP for Kids) testified that families face bureaucratic delays and denials when seeking mental‑health services, sometimes resulting in juvenile‑court or child‑welfare involvement and that legal advocacy helped reduce costly emergency and inpatient outcomes.
Witnesses asked the committee to prioritize maintenance of DMH child and adolescent funding, protect school‑based supports and fund community services that prevent boarding and emergency dependence.
