The Kennedy Forum

We are excited to join school leaders, policymakers, and mental health providers at the 8th annual Wellness Together Student Mental Wellness Conference (SMWC) this week. Our Co-Founder, Patrick J. Kennedy, will join "This Helps" podcast host and mental health advocate, Marlon Morgan, onstage to discuss critical issues in student mental health and share stories of innovative change. Lauren Finke, our Senior Director of Policy, will present with Erica Fener Sitkoff, clinical psychologist of 20 years, on sustainable school-based mental health services. If you're attending SMWC, join us today on these important conversations about youth mental health! When: October 11th, 11:45am and 1:45pm PT

The World Health Organization estimates that nearly 1 billion people worldwide have mental health disorders.  Today, we are proud to join fellow CEO Alliance for Mental Health partners in recognizing World Mental Health Day. The CEO Alliance for Mental Health is dedicated to improving the lives of people living with mental health and substance use challenges. The CEOs recognize World Mental Health Day, highlighting a critical element of their Unified Vision, and affirm that we stand together to increase the number and diversity of mental health and substance use condition workers and providers. #WorldMentalHealthDay #CEOAlliance

Are you working on mental health parity policy in your state? Join the State Parity Workgroup meeting next Thursday, Oct. 17. Email info@thekennedyforum.org to request to join the workgroup. This month, we’ll discuss aligning protocols on how a health plan covers care with Generally Accepted Standards of Care (GASC); share an overview of state work in Illinois with Ann Gillespie, Acting Director of the Illinois Department of Insurance, and former Illinois State Senator for District 27, and hear Tim Clement talk about the new open comment period on implementing parity in Medicaid.

We’re excited to have Alina Lodge join the Alignment for Progress commitment-maker project! Alina Lodge is dedicated to enhancing access to quality treatment for individuals and families affected by substance use disorders, integrating innovative therapies and comprehensive follow-up resources. Learn about making a commitment here: https://lnkd.in/ehA3q8bU.

What's next for mental health parity? Join us Oct. 16 for The Road Ahead for Parity: A Conversation Between our Co-Founder, Former Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy and Assistant Secretary for the Employee Benefits Security Administration Lisa M. Gomez. Learn what's new in the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act final rule, what it means for different stakeholders, and what additional policy change is needed now to continue to realize the vision of parity. Take part in the discussion — register here: https://lnkd.in/emRsZXxF

Seen or unseen, there are millions of people in recovery in every community across the U.S. — and all of them deserve the resources to thrive. That is why we were thrilled that our state policy and project director Jenny Burke could attend two Colorado-based events hosted by our partners at Mobilize Recovery, with support from the Elevance Health Foundation. The tour will help raise awareness around the power of community and peer support, evidence-based prevention and recovery strategies, and crisis support resources. Funding from Elevance facilitated Mobilize Recovery’s creation of the GET HELP App that helps individuals find appropriate substance use care. Hearing engaging stories of those living in recovery, while seeing the robust community support from legislators, advocates, providers, and those with lived experience, showed us a hopeful future of what is possible when we all give and receive the support we need. Access the GET HELP app here: https://lnkd.in/eFZV6Mzm (Pictured in the first photo, left to right: Aaron Kucharski, Brittany Pettersen, U.S. Representative from Colorado’s 7th District, Garrett Hade, Co-Founder at Mobilize Recovery, and Jenny Burke, State Policy and Project Director at The Kennedy Forum)

So many critical conversations were held last week at The Alignment for Progress conference. Thank you Kate Woodsome for moderating and sharing these insightful reflections.

PACE Healthcare Capital was delighted to attend The Kennedy Forum’s Alignment for Progress conference this week. Alignment for Progress provides the large-scale coordination of a strategic national vision uniting stakeholders across aisle and industry. Julia Monfrini Peev, Jon David Willingham, and Nans RIVAT, as well as Hafeezah Muhammad (CEO of our portfolio company, Backpack Healthcare), joined leading #policymakers, #innovators, #advocates, #providers, and #payers for a powerhouse event.   Patrick J. Kennedy’s opening keynote set a powerful tone with the ambitious 90-90-90 goal for 2033: ✅ 🔎 90% of people screened for mental health conditions ✅ 🏨 90% receiving high-quality, evidence-based care ✅ 🙌 90% managing their symptoms and achieving recovery   Tech innovation, telehealth, and policy reform emerged as the game-changers we need to reduce stigma, expand access, and to redefine mental healthcare in pursuit of parity of care.   Some particular highlights: 📖 The extraordinarily inspiring panelists featured in "Profiles in Mental Health Courage,” (the new book by Patrick J. Kennedy and Stephen Fried) who bravely opened up about their mental health journeys and systemic obstacles   📈 💡 The Economics of Mental Health with Caroline Pearson, Dr. Ashwin Vasan and Nathaniel Counts – shifting the focus to align funding with real care outcomes 🚀 Innovations to Address the Opioid Crisis, tackling one of the biggest challenges in healthcare with urgency   We’re grateful to have been part of this powerful dialogue that is clearly accelerating the shift towards mental health parity and better access to care for everyone.  Thank you again to Patrick J. Kennedy, Amy Kennedy, Rebecca O. Bagley, and the terrific team at The Kennedy Forum for a compelling and deeply substantive gathering! #MentalHealth #Alignment4Progress #TheKennedyForum #Healthcare

To create a mental health and substance use disorder (MH/SUD) system that works, we need everyone at the table. At the Alignment for Progress conference, attendees heard from people with lived experiences, providers, payors, government officials, philanthropists, innovators, and more. Thank you to 70+ speakers who shared touching personal stories, robust deep-dives on initiatives, and challenges and potential solutions to problems facing the MH/SUD community. You can learn about the tools discussed by these experts here: https://lnkd.in/ew3Uhay2 Stay connected to hear about our expert-packed events here: https://lnkd.in/eTMRpY-s #Align4Progress

It takes team work to make the dream work! 🤝 More than 170 organizations have made a commitment to the Alignment for Progress goals which fundamentally reshape how mental health and substance use disorders (MH/SUD) are prevented, treated, and supported. Thank you to every organization that attended or spoke at the the conference to share how they are doing their part to achieve the movement's 90-90-90 goals: By 2033: - 90% of individuals are screened for MH/SUD; - 90% receive the quality care they need; - 90% manage their symptoms and achieve recovery. Learn how to make a commitment here: https://lnkd.in/ehA3q8bU #Align4Progress