May is Mental Health Awareness Month, offering an opportunity to shine a spotlight on the importance of mental health, break the stigma that surrounds it, and advocate for better support systems for children. This year, however, the conversation comes with a sense of urgency and concern. The Trump Administration recently announced a $1 billion cut to school-based mental health services grants. These grants were created under the 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA) in response to the Uvalde, Texas school shooting. This billion-dollar blow comes at the same time Congressional leaders are seeking to slash funding for Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) – the two pillars of children’s health coverage, insuring over 37 million children in the United States.

For many school districts, the BSCA grants made it possible to hire more counselors, social workers, and psychologists. In some rural and underserved communities, these funds allowed schools to triple their mental health staff, providing students with vital support for anxiety, depression, trauma, and everyday stress. These professionals often serve as the first — and sometimes only — point of contact for children in need.

With the abrupt end of this funding, schools across the country are now facing the painful prospect of laying off staff and scaling back mental health programs that serve kids and teens. These cuts will mean longer waits for help, fewer trusted adults for students to turn to, and a return to the days when many children’s mental health needs went unnoticed and unmet.

This setback comes at a time when children’s mental health needs are at an all-time high. Nearly one in five children, ages 3-17 struggle with mental, emotional, developmental, or behavioral disorders. Only about half of these children receive treatment. Suicide remains one of the leading causes of death among teenagers, with 20% of high school students reporting they seriously considered suicide in 2023.

School-based mental health services are critical to identifying issues early and providing timely intervention. When these services are cut, students — especially those in rural or low-income areas — are left with even fewer options for support.

As if the loss of school-based mental health funding weren’t enough, Congressional leaders are also proposing hundreds of billions of dollars in cuts to Medicaid and CHIP. The more than 37 million children these programs insure include those from families with low incomes, those in foster care, and those living in rural communities. Medicaid and CHIP don’t just cover doctor visits, they are essential for funding school-based physical and mental health services.

Medicaid and CHIP provide billions of dollars each year to school districts, enabling them to offer a wide range of services directly on campus. These funds allow schools to:

  • Hire and retain counselors, social workers, and psychologists who provide mental and behavioral health care to students.
  • Offer preventive and primary care through school-based clinics, including routine screenings and immunizations.
  • Support students with disabilities by funding therapies and specialized services required under federal law.
  • Expand access to care for all eligible students, not just those with disabilities, in many states.

For many families, especially those in rural or underserved communities, school-based health services funded by Medicaid and CHIP are the most accessible or even the only source of care. Students are far more likely to receive mental health support when it is available at school, reducing barriers related to transportation, cost, and stigma.

If Congress moves forward with cuts to Medicaid and CHIP, schools could lose the ability to provide these critical services. These service losses would disproportionately affect children who rely on school-based care, leading to increased unmet physical and mental health needs, higher absenteeism, and more children struggling academically and emotionally without the support they need. States would be forced to cut services, restrict eligibility, or reduce provider payments, further straining an already fragile system and deepening health disparities for kids.

The combined effect of losing both dedicated school mental health grant funding and the foundational support of Medicaid and CHIP would be nothing short of devastating. It would put at risk the progress made in recent years to reduce stigma, increase awareness, and improve access to mental health care for kids and teens. As we observe Mental Health Awareness Month, policymakers must commit to ensuring that every child has the support they need to thrive, not just survive. They can start by demanding that the Administration reinstate the $1 billion in bipartisan grants Congress passed for school mental health services and by also refusing to cut Medicaid and CHIP.