The initiative, passed in March, distributes one-time payments to providers to:
- Reduce use of hospital emergency departments for behavioral health crises
- Meet increased demand caused by the long-term mental health effects of the pandemic
- Stabilize and help reduce wait lists for community-based services
“The pandemic has taken a toll on the mental health of Maine people, increasing the need for services at the very same time that it exhausts the hardworking professionals who provide these services,” the governor, who proposed the initiative, said in a June 24 news release. “This investment aims to stabilize our behavioral health system [and] advances the critical structural reforms that will improve and strengthen the system in the long term.”
