Lawmakers approve bills on children’s mental health

HARTFORD — A package of bills that would provide tens of millions of dollars to address the pandemic's toll on Connecticut's youth received final approval in the General Assembly on Tuesday.

The investments in children's mental, behavioral and developmental health, which are supported by both Democrats and Republicans, are a centerpiece of the 2022 legislative session — with the honorific bill numbers Senate Bill 1 and Senate Bill 2 in the Senate, and House Bill 5001 in the House.

As one piece of legislation won unanimous approval in the Senate, the House adopted the first of two bills that would complete the bipartisan effort to use part of the state's robust budget surplus and federal pandemic relief to help children and teenagers recover from the impacts of the pandemic.

A truancy intervention program is part of the wideranging package. “It's a symptom of the first time a child is experiencing some stress,” said state Sen. Saud Anwar, D-South Windsor, a physician who is co-chairman of the Public Health Committee, stressing the need for crisis intervention and treating trauma.

Senate Bill 1, a massive bill that provides grants for school districts to hire and retain more school social workers and counselors, allows school nurses to administer opioid-reversal drugs to students, and permit local school boards to offer remote learning starting with the 2024-25 school year. The latter would enable students home sick from school, for example, to participate in online instruction.

Another provision in the bill would provide grants to child care and early childhood providers to supplement employee salaries and address other needs — an issue “very dear to my heart,” said Rep. Bobby Sanchez, D-New Britain, a preschool teacher for 20 years.

Senate Bill 2 includes provisions ranging from a fund to help families pay for mental health treatment for their children to providing around-the-clock mobile crisis response services.