NJAMHAA 75th Anniversary

Commemorative Journal 39 The Consolidated Appropriations Act extended the Community Mental Health Services Demonstration Program through May 22, 2020. The SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act authorized Medicaid payments for services provided outside of IMDs for pregnant and postpartum women receiving SUD treatment services in IMDs; and mandated Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) coverage for mental health services, including SUD treatment. 2019 reSET, the first mental health app to be approved by the Food and Drug Administration, was created. It was developed to improve retention in outpatient substance use treatment. Media attention on the need for increased behavioral healthcare funding continued in 2024 with another of Dr. Wentz’s op-eds being published in the Star-Ledger on January 29, 2024, as well as on NJ.com during the same week and on MosaicNJ.com on April 23, 2024. NJAMHAA made an equally compelling case in its FY2025 campaign, Untold Stories – Why Access to Care Must Be the Highest Priority , which led to an op-ed being published on NJ.com on January 30, 2025, and another one in NJ Spotlight News shortly before the budget was passed in late June 2025. Among several of Dr. Wentz’s op-eds that were published in 2025, most notable was “Why other states should follow New Jersey’s lead on Medicaid” in NJ Spotlight News on November 26, 2025. In addition, Dr. Wentz was interviewed multiple times about the anticipated impact of federal funding cuts to Medicaid and the 988 crisis response system. These media outlets were NJ Spotlight News, NorthJersey.com and Mental Health Weekly . In addition, Debra Wentz was interviewed on Issues and Ideas Radio . Calendar year 2026 started out with strong media coverage that continued in May, which is especially important as it was Mental Health Awareness Month and not long before the state budget would be finalized. Dr. Wentz had op-eds published on two critical funding issues. The Asbury Park Press published “NJ urgently needs mental health and substance use treatment” on May 29, 2026, and NJ Spotlight News published “Student mental health program NJ4S must be preserved” on May 19, 2026. NJAMHAA continues to have significant visibility and impact through media outlets. The staff’s tracking of media coverage shows that from 2010 through April 8, 2026, NJAMHAA has averaged 55 media placements per year. Most notably, these include 362 interviews for news articles in print and online publications, and 162 op-eds and letters to editors, many of which are also published online. In addition, NJAMHAA was interviewed 103 times by TV and radio reporters. In addition to gaining coverage in traditional media, NJAMHAA is frequently featured in trade publications, such as Mental Health Weekly . NJAMHAA also continued to increase its visibility on social media, reinforcing its advocacy messages, promoting its conferences and highlighting behavioral health and the value of related services during national awareness events. Particularly noteworthy is the spike in responses to NJAMHAA’s posts in May 2026. A LinkedIn post about tardive dyskinesia (TD) consisting of a photo of the “Trenton Makes, the World Takes” bridge lit up in observance of TD Awareness Week garnered an outstanding number of 2,778 impressions. In addition, a video by Shauna Fuzes, NJAMHAA’s Vice President of Public Affairs and Member Services, in which she shared her personal experiences with depression and suicide and a message to help eliminate stigma, quickly garnered more than 200 views on Facebook. From June 11, 2025 through June 11, 2026, NJAMHAA’s posts on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn grew in reach by 1,500 individuals since the same period the previous year. These posts were viewed more than 34,000 times and resulted in an average of nearly 24% increase in followers. By contrast, the previous year’s statistics were more than 3,000 views and an average 16.5% increase in followers.