State Report Shows Progress in Mental Health Services

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services recently released a report detailing progress in increasing access to quality mental health, developmental disability, and substance use services. The year-one progress report on the NCDHHS Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Services (DMH/DD/SUS) 2024-2029 strategic plan highlights achievements in the seven priority areas geared toward creating a comprehensive mental health care system that "works for everyone."

"We are building a healthier North Carolina that puts people first, meeting their health needs at the right time and in the setting that is best for them," said NC Health and Human Services Secretary Dev Sangvai. "This purpose drives all the work we do and will continue to be our motivational force as we strive to build a healthier and safer state for everyone who calls North Carolina home."

The seven priorities outlined in the plan include:

1. Increase Access to Care Across the State

2. Increase Access to Quality Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (I/DD) and Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) Services

3. Prevent Substance Misuse and Overdose

4. Build the Workforce

5. Strengthen the Crisis System

6. Expand Services for Individuals in the Justice System

7. Amplify Recovery and Community-Based Services

   
   

The new report details progress NCDHHS made in each of the priority areas in 2025. Highlights listed from the first year include:

• Opening seven new Behavioral Health Urgent Care centers and one new Facility-Based Crisis center

• Opening two Mobile Opioid Treatment Programs to provide medication for opioid use disorder for hard-to-reach communities

• Opening two new peer respite centers, giving more communities access to these recovery-oriented and stigma-free environments

• Expanding the Licensed Workforce Loan Repayment Program for licensed professionals who provide mental health, SUD, I/DD and TBI services in rural and underserved communities

• Launching an Advanced Direct Support Professionals (DSP) course in partnership with three community colleges to provide credit for a Human Services associate’s degree, helping DSPs advance in their profession

• Launching Unshame NC with First Lady Anna Stein to increase awareness and decrease stigma around SUD and medications for opioid use disorder (MOUD)

• Increasing by 20% the number of people with I/DD who receive home and community-based services while on the waitlist for the Innovations Waiver

  
  

"Whether it’s for ourselves or loved ones, we are all impacted by mental health challenges, making it critical to ensure services are easy to access and in the setting that is right for the person needing care," said Debra Farrington, NCDHHS Deputy Secretary for Health. "Our efforts are working. We are growing capacity for mental health care in communities across the state. This includes integrating primary care with mental health and substance use disorder services."

"The department has spent the past year building the statewide workforce, growing community crisis supports and expanding access to services for people involved in the justice system," said Kelly Crosbie, MSW, LCSW, Director of the NCDHHS Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Services. "I am proud of our progress and grateful to all our community partners for their continued support in implementing the Strategic Plan."

The department’s priority to improve mental health support for people involved in the justice system aligns with Governor Stein’s Executive Order 33: Protecting North Carolinians Through Stronger Behavioral Health and Criminal Justice Systems. NCDHHS efforts center on care over punishment, expanding services that help people avoid incarceration, receive treatment while incarcerated, and successfully re-enter their communities. Examples include partnerships with community organizations like Daymark Recovery Services and Aya House to provide housing support, mental health treatment and employment assistance for people recently released from incarceration.    

NCDHHS is also continuing work to lower opioid use and increase access to treatment. The taxpayer-funded agency partnered with Alliance Health LME-MCO and the NC Harm Reduction Coalition to improve naloxone ordering and delivery processes to decrease costs and better reach communities at the highest risk of opioid overdoses. Since launching the partnership in 2020, more than 150,000 kits have been distributed.

"These efforts are working," according to their recent statement. "In the first quarter of 2025, the number of people receiving services through an Opioid Treatment Center increased by 9% over the first quarter of 2024," the statement said.

The Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Use Services Strategic Plan builds upon previous efforts by NCDHHS and its partners, including the Opioid Action Plan, Behavioral Health Roadmap, Suicide Prevention Action Plan, and Olmstead Plan, the report said.