Gordon announces roadmap to improve mental health care in Wyoming

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (KIFI) – Governor Mark Gordon launched an initiative to address Wyoming’s ongoing mental health crisis.

The Governor’s “Mental Health Roadmap” takes steps to advancing systemic behavioral health reform in Wyoming, identifying five pillars that are critical to improving outcomes for those who are battling mental health issues. The strategy builds and expands upon existing programs and reflects the ongoing work of many people across Wyoming, as well as the Legislature. 

The five pillars are:

• Access to Care-- Ensuring residents have access to the continuum of behavioral health services.
• Affordability of Care-- Ensuring cost is not a barrier to accessing services in Wyoming.
• Quality of Care-- Delivering the highest quality of service based on best practices and evidence-based research.
• Innovation--Constantly thinking of ways to improve our system based on new research and information. 
• Suicide Prevention and Anti-Stigma efforts

Each pillar has priorities and key strategies to achieve those priorities.

“The community engagement that we’ve had, including the recent mental health town halls, along with the work of the legislative and judicial branches have led us to identify our priorities and our most significant challenges,” Governor Gordon said. “We know how critical it is to Wyoming’s future to address the mental healthcare needs of our residents.”

You can view the Wyoming Behavioral Health Reform Report HERE.