CA Coalition Calls on Candidates to Prioritize Behavioral Health

The California Hospital Association and other partners this week launched , a statewide effort to engage candidates and highlight the importance of addressing behavioral health issues in 2018 elections. 鈥淲e are united behind a powerful cause,鈥 CHA President and CEO and AHA Board Member Carmela Coyle. 鈥淏ehavioral health matters because it affects all of us. Young, old, rich, poor. White, Latino, African-American, Asian. If you鈥檙e diagnosed with cancer, you鈥檙e often surrounded by teams ready to help. But with a behavioral health diagnosis, we often fall into nothingness, without the resources and help and support that鈥檚 needed. That has to change.鈥 Other coalition members include the National Alliance on Mental Illness California, Mental Health America of California, California State Sheriff鈥檚 Association, California State Association of Counties, California Police Chief鈥檚 Association, and Service Employees International Union State Council. According to a recent statewide poll, nearly nine in 10 likely voters want candidates to prioritize behavioral health issues.