Addressing Utah’s growing mental and behavioral health crisis was a top priority for the Legislature during the 2024 session.
Representative Steve Eliason, a key player in these efforts, championed two crucial bills aligned with Utah’s Mental and Behavioral Health Master Plan, which was funded by the Utah Hospital Association.
“Knowing that the number one cause of death for children in Utah is suicide, that is a very motivating factor for me to reduce those preventable deaths,” said Eliason.
House Bill 71 aims to expand Utah’s behavioral health crisis response system.
“Instead of having flashing lights and people in uniforms, these are people in unmarked cars that are mental health professionals and appear that can sit down with them in the privacy of their home and help them work through what they’re going, dealing with,” said Eliason.
The bill also increases the number of crisis receiving centers across the state, providing safe spaces for those in need of immediate mental health support.
Another critical piece of legislation, House Bill 413, focuses on student mental health screening.
“What we know from the experts are that about half of all serious mental illnesses emerge in the mid teenage years and about 75 percent of all mental serious mental illnesses will emerge by the mid twenties,” said Eliason.
The bill expands mental health screening in schools, with participation increasing from 30 percent to 90 percent this school year.
Rep. Eliason also emphasized the importance of crisis resources like the 988 hotline.
“It’s the equivalent of 911, only it’s for mental health,” he said. “It’s a free confidential call. They can call the number any time, day or night.”
Utah hospitals want to give people the care they need,” said Jordan Sorenson, director of behavioral health and emergency preparedness at the Utah Hospital Association. “For behavioral mental health issues, the emergency room sometimes isn’t the best place for that. The Utah Hospital Association wanted to bring the community together through the master plan to make sure people got the care that they need.”
These legislative efforts mark significant progress in Utah’s commitment to improving mental and behavioral health services for its citizens.