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According to a DOH news release, the state’s Department of Health and Human Services will receive nearly $3.5 million from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to establish a center of excellence in behavioral health for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander people.
The center will advance behavioral health equity for AA and NHPI communities by promoting culturally and linguistically appropriate behavioral health practices and establishing a committee to identify emerging issues.
The grant is an important step in the Biden-Harris administration’s efforts to address health inequalities affecting these communities, Krystal Ka’ai said in a SAMHSA news release. Ka’ai is Executive Director of the White House Initiative on AAs and NHPIs.
“This new center will provide access to culturally and linguistically appropriate behavioral health services, which are essential as our communities continue to grapple with the impact of the pandemic and anti-Asian violence,” she said.
This year’s grant money is nearly $700,000. The center will provide training and counseling services for practitioners on issues such as unconscious bias and hatred towards AAs and NHPIs and their impact on mental health. It will also develop practices to improve engagement and retention among AA and NHPI behavioral health professionals.
Other centers of excellence established by SAMHSA include the LGBTQ+ Behavioral Equity Center of Excellence and the African American Behavioral Health Center of Excellence.
Recovery from mental health and substance use disorders requires culturally responsive care, Miriam E. Delphin-Rittmon said in the SAMHSA news release. Rittmon is Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Drug Use at the Department of Health and Human Services and Head of SAMHSA.
“This center of excellence will educate provider organizations on how to better serve members of the AA and NHPI communities across the country,” she said.
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Linsey Dower deals with racial and cultural issues and is a corps member of Report for America, a national service organization that places journalists in local newsrooms to cover undercover issues and communities.
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