HHS Awards $2.6 Million to Improve Access to Mental Health Services

Grants Will Support Graduate Psychology Training

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today announced $2.6 million in training grants to expand mental and behavioral health care services for vulnerable and underserved populations.

The grants are funded under the Graduate Psychology Education Program (GPEP): Workforce Training to Improve Access to Mental Health Services, a program of HHS’ Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA).  The GPEP awarded grants to 19 accredited health professions schools and other public and private entities for FY 2010-2012.  The award amount of $2.6 million for FY 2010 represents a 60 percent increase in GPEP funding over FY 2009.

As of June 30, 2010, 3,483 U.S. communities had mental health shortages, impacting access to services for approximately 84 million people.

 “The ability to provide mental health services in integrated care settings is essential to quality patient centered care,” said Secretary Sebelius.  “This funding is another step in President Obama’s commitment to mental health parity.”

GPEP-funded programs foster an integrated approach to health care services, address access for populations in need, and evaluate program outcomes.  Psychologists receive interdisciplinary training from providers representing more than 30 health professions and medical specialties, and develop competencies to treat vulnerable populations such as older adults, children, chronically ill or disabled persons, and victims of abuse or trauma, including returning military personnel.

“The GPEP has increased the number of graduating students who choose to practice in communities where workforce shortages exist and where mental health services often are most needed,” said HRSA Administrator Mary K. Wakefield, Ph.D., R.N.  

Graduate Psychology Education Awards

Grant	City	State	Award
Board of Trustees, University of Arkansas	Fayetteville	AR	$    79,250.00
Children’s Hospital Los Angeles	Los Angeles	CA	$  190,000.00
Regents of the University of Colorado/University of Colorado at Colorado Springs	Colorado Springs	CO	$  139,032.00
Alfred I. Dupont Hospital for Children/NCC-DV	Wilmington	DE	$    98,647.00
Georgia State University Research Foundation	Atlanta	GA	$  119,581.00
Medical College of Georgia, Research Institute, Inc.	Augusta	GA	$  105,849.00
Boston Medical Center Corp.	Boston	MA	$  165,596.00
University of Massachusetts Medical School	Worcester	MA	$  143,767.00
Wayne State University	Detroit	MI	$  176,712.00
University of North Carolina at Greensboro	Greensboro	NC	$  167,968.00
University of North Dakota	Grand Forks	ND	$  188,993.00
University of Nebraska Medical Center	Omaha	NE	$  155,850.00
The Regents of New Mexico State University	Las Cruces	NM	$  160,218.00
University of Rochester Medical Center	Rochester	NY	$  174,500.00
Cherokee Health Systems	Knoxville	TN	$  101,048.00
University of Texas Austin	Austin	TX	$    88,888.00
Eastern Virginia Medical School	Norfolk	VA	$  169,474.00
Virginia Commonwealth University	Richmond	VA	$  131,853.00
University of Washington	Seattle	WA	$    43,825.00
		TOTAL	$ 2,601,051.00

For more information on HRSA’s health professions programs, visit http://bhpr.hrsa.gov/.

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), part of the U. S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the primary Federal agency for improving access to health care services for people who are uninsured, isolated, or medically vulnerable. For more information about HRSA and its programs, visit www.hrsa.gov.

Note: All HHS press releases, fact sheets and other press materials are available at www.hhs.gov/news.