Nikki Highsmith Vernick, CEO of the Horizon Foundation, advocated against proposed cuts for behavioral health services on Feb. 25. (Photo by Danielle J. Brown/Maryland Matters)
Mental health advocates showed up to a House hearing Wednesday prepared to fight for the restoration of more than $100 million in funding that had been cut by the Moore administration — only to have administration officials surprise them by announcing the replacement of some funds.
But in the same hearing where the administration said it was restoring some programming, legislative analysts recommended that lawmakers claw back another pot of money. That proved to the parents, providers and program recipients at the packed hearing that they will need to continue to fight. Any cuts in the fiscal 2026 budget will jeopardize the progress made for mental health access in the state.
“There have been so many strides that this community has made … and we can’t go backwards,” Nikki Highsmith Vernick, CEO of the Horizon Foundation, said after the meeting. “We recognize that there’s a state budget situation – we’ve made so much investment, and we can’t go back because the needs are only rising.”
Her comments came after a crowded 90-minute hearing on the Behavioral Health Administration budget before the Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Social Services.
“Our little room here has never been more exciting and full,” Del. Emily Shetty (D-Montgomery), the subcommittee chair, half in jest. “It’s a very popular subject matter.”
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It came a day after the same advocates had gathered in Annapolis to push back against a set of proposed cuts totaling more than $100 million for a variety of mental health services, including funds for a crisis phone line and mental health services for kids. They said Tuesday that the reduced funds would have ripple effects that would jeopardize student well-being, extend emergency room wait times and increase reliance on law enforcement for mental health needs.
One of their largest concerns was the failure to fund the 988 Lifeline, a crisis hotline advocates say is crucial in helping people in severe mental health crisis get connected to services. Gov. Wes Moore’s (D) original fiscal 2026 budget proposal did not include the 988 crisis line, normally about a $20 million expenditure.
But Behavioral Health Deputy Secretary Alyssa Lord announced at Wednesday’s hearing that the administration now plans to fund the line.
“We received confirmation from DBM (Department of Budget and Management) today that 988 funds will be in the supplemental budget,” Lord told the subcommittee, though she did not specify how much.
Moore’s budget originally proposed funding the Behavioral Health Administration at more than $3.4 billion in fiscal 2026, an increase of $82.7 million, or 2.5%.
But the work is not done for mental health advocates. A proposed cut of $90 million is still on the line for the Consortium on Coordinated Community Supports, which provides school-based mental health services.
Highsmith Vernick worries that going through with the Consortium cut would risk the mental health support network in Howard County, where her organization is based. The Horizon Foundation helps support the county’s behavioral health services, including school-based mental health services that are currently at risk under the governor’s proposed budget.
“When you think about kids needing to feel well in order to learn, this is our commitment … in making sure kids feel better, so they can actually be in school, so they can learn,” she said after the hearing.
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The governor’s budget does include a 1% rate increase for behavioral health providers, but that could now be threatened. State analysts suggest cutting the increase to help the state save more than $19 million, in a year when it faces an estimated $3 billion shortfall in the state budget overall. Advocates counter that cutting the rate increase risks losing providers during an significant staffing shortage.
Dan Martin, senior director of public policy for the Mental Health Association of Maryland, said he was pleased to hear some of progress on mental health funds.
“We’re thrilled to hear that 988 will receive funding,” Martin said. “But we’re really encouraging them not to cut the funding, because we already don’t have enough providers … and we’re just going to lose more.”
-Editor’s note: The Horizon Foundation is a financial supporter of Maryland Matters.