Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. (text of measure as introduced: CR S6202-6204)
Congressional Research Service
Official summary
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Jun 4, 2009
Community Mental Health Services Improvement Act - Amends the Public Health Service Act to require the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS), acting through the Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), to award grants for demonstration projects to provide coordinated and integrated services to individuals with mental illnesses who have co-occurring primary care conditions and chronic diseases through the co-location of primary and specialty care services in community-based mental and behavioral health settings.
Requires the Secretary to make funds available for the development or expansion of programs to provide integrated treatment services for individuals with a serious mental illness and a co-occurring substance abuse disorder.
Deems certain community mental health centers to be automatically designated as having health professional shortage areas for purposes of the National Health Service Corps.
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Requires the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration, to award matching grants to states, territories, and Indian tribes or tribal organizations for programs to address behavioral and mental health workforce needs of designated mental health professional shortage areas.
Directs the Secretary, acting through the Administrator of SAMHSA, to award grants for: (1) establishing or expanding accredited behavioral and mental health education programs; and (2) providing tele-mental health services in medically-underserved areas.
Requires the Secretary to: (1) implement a plan for ensuring that various components of the National Health Information Infrastructure address the needs of mental health and substance abuse treatment providers; and (2) finance related infrastructure improvements, technical support, personnel training, and ongoing quality improvements.
Source last updated: Dec 10, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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