The mental health and substance abuse needs of older adults should be one of the priorities! This is an growing population that gets overlooked due to stigma and stereotypes.

Incorporate a priority on improving the quality and effectiveness of services for children and families

The expertise and knowledge developed at the local, State, and Federal level over 17 years of systems of care for children's mental health about systems integration and reform should be used to inform the integration of mental and physical health and healthcare reform. System of care grantee staff and the collective knowledge of all of the supports to this program could dramatically reduce the level of effort required to implement health reform. These experts know how to do it!

Make sure that every state and community has access to funding to develop and sustain the ATOD prevention infrastructure in goals 1, 2, 3 and 4.

Employment is a priority for many living with mental illness and substance abuse issues, therefore it should be a priority for SAMHSA. I hear students learning to become advocates talk about the importance of finding and keeping jobs/careers. I know helping people secure employment is important to many community agencies as well it should be and SAMHSA should help the agencies do that better.

Prenatal exposures to alcohol and other drugs have been linked to mental health issues in adulthood. SAMSHA should include prenatal exposure as a research and funding priority

SAMHSA has been at the forefront of Cultural Competence in the funding/non-profit world. The new material LACKS Cultural Competence specificity. Without it, we may lose what we have gained by not emphasizing that Cultural Competence standards be met in order for non-profits to receive funding. If you don't tell people what you want, they won't do it. Plain and simple.
Jimi Kelley, FSS, FSST
Native American Outreach
NAMI

Fund incentives for states to divert youth with mental health and special education needs from juvenile justice facilities to home and community based alternatives.

Many older adults are not well-served by community mental health because Medicare is so restrictive egarding whoit will compensate for providing services and they do not qualify for Medicaid. Most agencies cannot afford the model Medicare supports and so do not reach out to this very under-served population. SAMHSA should work with its partners at CMS and provide technical assistance to community mental health providers. This would be a game-changer in terms of the number of older adults accessing services.