Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long holds first ever mental & behavioral health summit in Delaware

WILMINGTON, Del. – Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long held Delaware’s first ever mental and behavioral health summit.

The day-long summit convened on Monday in Wilmington and brought national and local experts, elected officials, and community advocates together to discuss the state of Delaware’s behavioral and mental health.

The focus on the issues comes amid an ongoing national and state opioid crisis and a rise in the need for mental health treatment and services, a need made far worse by the pandemic and the vital gaps in access to care it caused.

“The emotional well-being of our families has never been more important. From Delawareans living with mental illness or substance use disorder to those whose families have been touched by trauma or suicide, ensuring people have the support they need demands a cradle to grave approach,” said Lt. Governor Bethany Hall-Long, Chair of the Delaware Behavioral Health Consortium. “This Summit provided an opportunity to bring leaders, experts, and impacted Delawareans together to address the root causes of these struggles, so our residents have the capacity to heal and thrive.”

Across the country, states are grappling with the fallout from COVID-19 impacting families, workforce needs, treatment, and more. State data cites that close to 1 in 4 adults in Delaware reported symptoms of anxiety or depression between March 2020 and April 2023.

According to the CDC, every 11 minutes in the United States we lose someone to suicide. And as the national opioid epidemic continues, Delaware recently reported its highest yearly overdose deaths in 2022.

The summit tackled those issues and more as there was an increased focus on groups who are vulnerable to mental and behavioral health problems.

“We were able to talk about resources with special populations with our veterans, with our youth and our mental health and our schools,” Lt. Governor Hall-Long explained. “It’s ok not to be ok.”

Delaware’s Behavioral Health Consortium, a national model championed by Lt. Governor Hall-Long, is a years-long, multi-faceted initiative that convenes community advocates, law enforcement, healthcare professionals and state leaders to tackle the  issue of mental and behavioral health head-on.

As part of the consortium, legislative efforts were launched to create the nation’s first overdose system of care along with mental health parity legislation that has advanced a holistic approach to care that emphasizes housing and food security and other social determinants of health.

“The Behavioral Health Consortium works tirelessly to create solutions that reduce stigma and support high-quality, personal prevention, treatment and recovery services for all Delawareans,” explained Alexia Wolf, Director of the Behavioral Health Consortium.  ”Our residents deserve nothing less. I’m excited to see the future connections and collaboration this summit nurtures.”

The summit featured a host of panelists and featured speakers who shared their national expertise around data, policy, and the social determinants of health, including Tom Coderre, acting Deputy Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).

“The mental health challenges being faced by our nation – the overdose epidemic, the high rates of suicide, the prevalence of depression and anxiety among people, especially young people – are significant,” said Coderre. “As this crucial summit gets under way, know that the Biden-Harris Administration is prioritizing approaches to safeguard the mental health of Americans, to connect people to the evidence-based treatments and supports they need to find recovery.”

Delaware’s Senior U.S. Senator Tom Carper was also on-hand for the summit where he praised efforts that put an increased focus on mental and behavioral health treatment and resources.

“Monday’s event is an important step forward in addressing the mental and behavioral health needs of Delawareans,” said Senator Carper. “I am proud of the bipartisan legislation I co-authored last year that helps bring mental health resources into our schools, which builds upon the work we are doing right here in the state. This is an all-hands-on-deck effort to ensure the mental health care needs of all Delawareans are met with accessibility and compassion.”

To close the event, Lt. Governor Hall-Long led a special fireside chat with The Kennedy Forum founder and former U.S. Representative Patrick J. Kennedy around strategies to enhance behavioral and mental health support, covering insurance parity, wraparound treatment solutions and more.

“Lt. Governor Hall-Long continues to be a strong ally and champion for progress in our mental health and substance use systems. I was glad to join her on Monday, share updates on The Kennedy Forum’s work to ensure mental health is treated as essential health, and learn more about the Lt. Governor’s Behavioral Health Consortium as a national model for this work,” said former U.S. Representative Patrick J. Kennedy (D-RI) and Founder of The Kennedy Forum.

If you’re suffering from mental health or substance abuse disorder and need help, visit helpisherede.com