HB 2439-S2.E - DIGEST
(DIGEST AS ENACTED)

Creates the children's mental health work group to identify barriers in accessing mental health services for children and families and to advise the legislature on statewide mental health services for this population.

Requires the state health care authority and the department of social and health services to report to the appropriate legislative committees on the status of access to behavioral health services for children from birth through age seventeen.

Requires the joint legislative audit and review committee to conduct an inventory of the mental health service models available to students in schools, school districts, and educational service districts.

Requires Forefront at the University of Washington to: (1) Convene a one-day in-person training of student support staff from the educational service districts to deepen the staff's capacity to assist schools in their districts in responding to concerns about suicide;

(2) After establishing these relationships with the educational service districts, continue to meet with the educational service districts via videoconference on a monthly basis to answer questions that arise for the educational service districts and to assess the feasibility of collaborating with the educational service districts to develop a multiyear, statewide rollout of a comprehensive school suicide prevention model; and

(3) Work to develop public-private partnerships to support the rollout of a comprehensive school suicide prevention model across the state's middle schools and high schools.

Provides that sections 4 and 5 of this act are null and void if appropriations are not approved.