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MetroHealth outlines youth mental‑health programs as ARPA funds end; officials warn of consent‑law impacts
Summary
MetroHealth Chief Mental Health Officer Jesse Higgins told the committee that ARPA‑funded youth mental‑health contracts served more than 6,000 children and that shifts in state law and exhausted ARPA funding are reducing school‑based service utilization; the city has preserved two school‑based contracts in the general fund.
Jesse Higgins, MetroHealth’s Chief Mental Health Officer, briefed the Educational Opportunities Committee on April 21 about the city’s youth mental‑health initiatives, their funding history and near‑term sustainability challenges.
Higgins summarized the local trajectory: initial COVID‑era funding allowed MetroHealth and partners to stand up school‑based services; the Office of Mental Health and Resilience launched in June 2022; American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) grants funded 20 community‑based youth mental‑health contracts totaling $15,750,000 that ended in 2025. Higgins said those contracts served more than 6,000 children in individual or group therapy and reported that, for youth with four or more sessions, 52 percent saw decreased symptoms and 44 percent saw increased well‑being.
Higgins and others warned that recent state policy changes have affected service delivery. She said Senate Bill 12 (effective Sept. 1) changed how schools obtain parental consent for health‑related services and that MetroHealth and partners tracked a decrease in school‑based service utilization and a simultaneous increase in hospitalizations and emergency detentions after the law’s implementation. MetroHealth staff are meeting with state representatives to present data and asked the committee to help elevate the local impacts.
Higgins described current local steps: two previously ARPA‑funded contracts—with Communities in Schools and the Mobile Mental Wellness Collaborative—were moved into the general fund and expanded through fiscal year 2027; MetroHealth is developing a blueprint to help districts use House Bill 2 school‑safety allotment funds for both physical and psychological safety and is promoting the third annual Bear Area School Safety and Mental Health Summit in October.
Public comment and committee discussion emphasized funding continuity and service coordination. Jessica Weaver of Communities in Schools, speaking during public comment, said: "This school year alone, we have supported 92 students completing more than 1,000 clinical sessions along with comprehensive case management for 425 family members," and described the program’s in‑school model and a recent family intervention. Committee members pressed for per‑school caseload data and clearer referral pathways as ARPA funds expire.
Next steps: MetroHealth is promoting the teen mental health survey (open through May 10 at the time of the briefing), working to strengthen referral pathways as ARPA funding ends, and will share further outcome data with council staff.
