On June 4, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announced that Indiana, along with nine other states, would be part of the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) Medicaid Demonstration Program. The CCBHC Medicaid Demonstration Program provides states with sustainable funding that helps them expand access to mental health and substance use services.

Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center is one of eight community mental health centers (CMHC) in Indiana chosen to participate in the CCBHC pilot, and one of two CMHCs from the Indianapolis area. CCBHC is a federally defined program that provides comprehensive mental health and substance use services to anyone seeking those services, regardless of diagnosis or insurance status. CCBHCs must ensure access to a comprehensive range of services, including outpatient primary care, providing care coordination when needed, and incorporating evidence-based practices and other supports based on a community needs assessment. CCBHCs increase access to crisis and behavioral health care in the community and have been shown to reduce homelessness and substance use.

“The most important difference is that the CCBHC is a federally defined program rather than a state-defined program,” said Ashley Overley, M.D., CEO, Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center. “The federal designation brings additional resources and the opportunity to elevate awareness and advocacy for mental health needs nationwide. This is a great step forward for both our state and our country in our ability to meet the mental health needs in our community.”

Elements of CCBHC are very similar to the CMHC model which Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center already embodies through the services they offer and providing care to all regardless of ability to pay. Being designated as a CCBHC will align Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center with the national model for mental health care that has demonstrated success with increasing the number of people served and ensures access to a wider array of evidence-based treatment and services that meet specific criteria for an integrated model of care delivery.

Importantly, the mission of the CCBHC is the same as the mission Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center has championed for 55 years. The most important difference is that the CCBHC is a federally defined program rather than a state-defined program. The federal designation brings additional resources and the opportunity to elevate awareness and advocacy for mental health needs nationwide. This is a great step forward for both Indiana and the U.S. in the ability to meet the mental health needs of its citizens.

Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center was established in 1969 as the first community mental health center in Indiana. It is licensed by the state of Indiana as a community mental health center and addictions treatment provider. Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center’s programs deliver comprehensive mental health services offering inpatient, outpatient, home-based, school and community-based programs to individuals and families of all ages in the Central Indiana area. Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center outpatient locations have a sliding fee schedule and are open to all regardless of ability to pay.

For more information about the services offered at Sandra Eskenazi Mental Health Center, please call 317.880.8491. For mental health emergencies, please call the crisis line at 317.880.8485.