Today, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have given their approval to California and Kentucky’s proposals for community-based mobile crisis intervention teams to offer Medicaid crisis services. This means that these two states, along with four others, have expanded access to community-based mental health and substance use crisis care through President Biden’s American Rescue Plan.

California and Kentucky will now be able to connect eligible individuals in crisis with a behavioral health provider 24/7, 365 days a year, using mobile crisis teams. Addressing the nation’s mental health crisis has been a top priority for the Biden-Harris Administration. This new option allows states to support community-based mobile crisis intervention teams in providing services to individuals with Medicaid. These teams, consisting of trained behavioral health professionals and paraprofessionals, aim to provide rapid response, individual assessment, and crisis de-escalation. They offer various services, including screening and assessment, stabilization and de-escalation, and coordination with other necessary health, social, and support services.

This integration of behavioral health services into Medicaid programs is essential in building sustainable and public health-focused support networks for our communities. By providing fast and appropriate care to individuals in crisis, the need for costly inpatient services can potentially be reduced. This new option will enable California and Kentucky to expand access to behavioral health professionals as the initial point of contact for individuals in crisis. The state plan amendments for both California and Kentucky include mobile crisis response crisis planning, facilitating warm handoffs, providing referrals to ongoing support, and conducting follow-up check-ins for individuals experiencing a mental health or substance use disorder crisis.

Kentucky is also adding additional services to their crisis continuum, such as stabilization services that go beyond what mobile crisis teams provide and are delivered in the community following a crisis event. For more information about the approval of California and Kentucky, please visit Medicaid.gov.