Bill would include crisis work in federal training programs

Federal workforce grants would cover training and hands-on placements for crisis-response work. The provisions cover behavioral health professionals, graduate trainees, and paraprofessional workers across four grant categories. Covered placements may use phone, text, or chat responders for mental health crisis lines. Remote programs must offer hands-on placement hours. The text authorizes funding but does not itself provide it. The $50 million yearly authorization applies to fiscal years 2026 through 2030, while the extra $10 million yearly authorization applies to fiscal years 2027 through 2031.

Fellowships under the Minority Fellowship Pilot Program would cover post-college training in crisis services. The program covers professionals treating mental health and substance use disorders, including people studying medicine, nursing, counseling, and related fields. Crisis training may prepare fellows for work in call centers, mobile teams, or stabilization facilities. The text authorizes funding but does not itself provide it. The $10 million authorization applies to fiscal years 2027 through 2031; the $25 million authorization for the program’s other fellowships applies to fiscal years 2023 through 2027.

The federal health secretary would collect the comparison and publish it in the Federal Register, an official government publication. The review covers health professional shortage areas and communities within them. The published data must count crisis call centers, mobile response units, and stabilization facilities, as well as behavioral and mental health professionals providing crisis services.