Denver City Wire

Mental and behavioral health conditions have significantly increased in Denver and across the country since the COVID-19 pandemic. To ensure Denverites are getting the care they need, the Denver Department of Public Health & Environment (DDPHE) is making $15 million in funding available to community organizations focused on improving the mental health of those in our city.  

DDPHE is seeking proposals to address and abate behavioral health concerns described in the Denver Behavioral Health Needs Assessment(BHNA) including coordination, education, and services, among others. Recently released by DDPHE, the BHNA found that for many Denver residents, accessing mental health services can be difficult. Findings indicated 41% of people who sought behavioral health services in the past 12 months had not obtained any type of service yet.

The BHNA, which used quantitative and qualitative data to understand the type and level of behavioral health service needs in Denver, recommended:

• Provide leadership to engage critical stakeholders to improve behavioral health services
• Increase awareness of and improve provision for language access services
• Increase the number of providers (including Medicaid providers) and ensure that existing providers are maintained, within the City and County of Denver
• Provide coordination and policy support to improve case management utilization
• Educate and raise awareness for consumers around mental health treatment service options and how to connect to them
• Increase culturally and linguistically responsive community outreach and involvement
• Improve access to services by encouraging extended hours and weekends 

DDPHE is seeking to use most of the allocated American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to support community-based organizations that meet at least one of the seven recommendations for Future Action from the BHNA. The RFP also identifies specific programming that would be appropriate to apply for.  

Read more on our website or view the full Request for Proposal (RFP). Proposals are due by 11:59 p.m. local time on July 31. Proposals should be submitted online through BidNet. A virtual information session will be held on June 22 for interested applicants.

Denver must allocate ARPA local relief funds, totaling $308 million, by the end of 2024 and spend them by the end of 2026. The city solicited and received feedback from over 12,000 residents, Denver City Council, city agencies, the Mayor’s Stimulus Advisory Committee, and the Mayor’s Economic Recovery Council to inform the use of the city’s ARPA allocation. Additionally, more can be seen about progress on the programs in Denver's regularly updated American Rescue Plan Funding Dashboard and story map. 

Original source can be found here