The National Association of Counties (NACo) announced the appointment of AOC Executive Director Gina Firman Nikkel, Ph.D. to the newly created NACo Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission, during its annual legislative conference held in Washington D.C.
The 14-member commission, created to drive change in the nation’s mental health system and policies, is composed of county leaders with mental health-centered expertise.
Nikkel, who has served as AOC’s Executive Director since 2020, brings to the commission many years experience as a therapist and program manager in rural county mental health and crisis work; 11 years as the Association of Oregon County Mental Health Program Director, eight years as a county commissioner, and nine years as the President and CEO of the international Foundation for Excellence in Mental Care (FEMHC) which she helped create. Dr. Nikkel holds a master’s degree in counseling and a Ph.D. in Social Public Policy and Leadership.
“I’m honored to have been appointed to this commission,” commented Dr. Nikkel. “The work of this body is critical in meeting the urgent needs of Americans in the mental health crisis we are currently facing.”
The commission’s charter is:
- Stimulate national sense of urgency, through an intergovernmental partnership framework, for addressing our nation’s crisis with mental health and wellbeing of residents, especially our most vulnerable.
- Elevate the national awareness of the roles, innovations, and pain-points facing county governments in addressing this escalating crisis.
- Achieve NACo’s public policy agenda, such as the full implementation of Mental Health Parity standards, modernize the unequal coverage of mental health care through the “institutions for mental disease” (IMD) prohibition, repeal the Medicaid Inmate Exclusion Policy for people held in jail pre-trial, and build the mental health workforce and continuum of care for the future.
- Align a cohesive national and intergovernmental strategy to improve and enhance the mental health and wellbeing of all Americans, with a special focus on our most vulnerable populations.
Issues that the committee will tackle are broad ranging, including the need for mental health professionals and increased need for service. Currently, one-third of the U.S. population lives in a county designated as a mental health professional shortage area.
“In 2021, nearly one in four U.S. adults and one in five adolescents experienced a mental illness,” said NACo President Denise Winfrey. “This commission understands the urgency of the moment. It’s made up of people who, in their own communities, are seeing the effects of the mental health crisis, and have an idea of where we need to start in order to address it.”
“The gap in service and continued increase in demand exacerbated by the pandemic has elevated the need for us to roll up our sleeves with coalition partners across a continuum of care, and drive real change through investments and policy,” said Nikkel. NACo is working with the White House, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Council of State Chief Justices, and many more coalition partners on this initiative.
Counties are well-positioned to lead action on the mental health crisis because counties play an integral role in local health, justice and human services systems. Direct mental health service delivery responsibilities are falling increasingly to America’s counties, which serve as the nation’s safety net for residents in need, act as first responders, operate crisis lines, and manage public hospitals and detention centers.
Between April 2023 and February of 2024 the commission will meet and convene sub-groups to develop a final report and recommendations at the 2024 NACo Legislative Conference.
For more information about NACo’s Commission on Mental Health and Wellbeing, click here.
Contributed by: Megan Chuinard | Public Affairs Associate