WeVote
Log In

Bill

Bill

HD 5815

A communication from the Executive Office of Health and Human Services (see Section 2WWWWW of Chapter 29 of the General Laws) submitting the revenue and expenditure activity of the Behavioral Health Access and Crisis Intervention Trust Fund for fiscal year 2024

194th Legislature (2025-2026)

The BHACI Trust Fund documents FY2024 funding and spending for statewide crisis services, clarifying General Fund roles, MBHP reimbursements, and planned expansion toward universal

Placed on file
0
WeVote Research Nonpartisan
Bill Summary · HD 5815

Summary of HD 5815 (Session 194th) — Massachusetts

Purpose and intent

  • The bill documents and presents revenue and expenditure activity for the Behavioral Health Access and Crisis Intervention (BHACI) Trust Fund for fiscal year 2024.
  • It fulfills a statutory requirement under Section 2WWWWW of Chapter 29 of the General Laws to report to the House and Senate Committees on Ways and Means and the Joint Committee on Mental Health and Substance Use and Recovery.

What the BHACI Trust Fund is

  • The BHACI Trust Fund supports a statewide, payor-agnostic crisis system for behavioral health, including:
    • A Behavioral Health Help Line (BHHL) for access, clinical assessment, and triage.
    • A statewide, 24/7 crisis intervention system delivered in mobile and community-based settings, available to all residents regardless of insurance.
  • The fund is designed to cover costs associated with these crisis services, independent of a patient’s insurance status.

Key provisions and figures (FY23–FY24 overview)

  • BHACI Trust Fund role:
    • Provides ongoing support for the BHHL and crisis intervention services statewide.
  • Relationship to general fund:
    • The General Fund has covered upfront costs for implementing and operating the BHHL.
  • Expenditures and funding specifics:
    • FY23:
    • General Fund support: $17.1 million for implementing/operating BHHL.
    • FY24:
    • General Fund support: $6.0 million for implementing/operating BHHL.
  • MBHP involvement:
    • The Massachusetts Behavioral Health Partnership (MBHP) handles provider reimbursement for crisis intervention services for uninsured, Medicare, and self-insured individuals.
    • MBHP administers reimbursement for commercially-insured individuals prior to/around mid-2023 (per the Division of Insurance bulletin in June 2023 mandating commercial coverage of crisis intervention services) and during the transition period as commercial contracts were updated.
    • FY24 MBHP payments related to crisis intervention were modest: $0.6 million.
  • DOI invoicing:
    • The FY24 payments include reimbursement for delayed invoices to EOHHS for costs of commercially insured individuals in FY23.

Revenue and expenditures (highlights)

  • Revenue (BHACI Trust Fund, in millions):
    • FY23: $34.4 million (Assessment)
    • FY24: $35.8 million (Assessment)
  • Payments (BHACI Trust Fund, in millions):
    • MBHP: FY24 $0.6 million
    • BHHL ISA: FY24 $5.3 million
    • Subtotal Payments (FY24): $5.9 million
  • Net trend:
    • The report anticipates increased spending in FY25 and FY26 as implementation delays are resolved and the set of crisis behavioral health services covered by the BHACI Trust is broadened to ensure access to the full continuum of CBHC (Crisis Behavioral Health Care) services for all individuals, regardless of insurance.

Who is affected

  • Individuals across Massachusetts who require behavioral health crisis intervention services:
    • Uninsured
    • Medicare beneficiaries
    • Self-insured (employer-sponsored plans)
    • Commercially insured individuals (through MBHP reimbursements and related payments)
  • Providers delivering crisis intervention services, including:
    • MBHP-partnered providers
    • Community-based crisis services and the BHHL network
  • State and mass health administrators:
    • EOHHS, MBHP, and related MassHealth program stakeholders, who administer and reimburse crisis services.

Procedural and timeline aspects

  • This document is a mandated biennial or annual reporting requirement under Section 2WWWWW of Chapter 29.
  • The report provides FY2023 and FY2024 activity and outlines anticipated FY2025–FY2026 spending increases tied to program expansion and implementation corrections.
  • The correspondence is dated June 9, 2026, with action history noting the bill was placed on file on July 2, 2026.

Bottom-line takeaway

  • HD 5815 presents a formal accounting of how the BHACI Trust Fund was funded and spent in FY2024, clarifying the role of the General Fund, MBHP reimbursements, and BHHL operations, while signaling planned growth in spending and scope of covered crisis services in the upcoming years to achieve universal access to the behavioral health crisis continuum.

Compiled from official sources — confirm details with the bill’s official record.

Sign in to ask a question.