Purpose

• Establish mental health care services for students delivered through telehealth and provide funding to support this effort. The bill aims to improve access to mental health care for students across Minnesota by using a single selected mental health care provider to deliver services statewide, with services provided by clinicians licensed in Minnesota and coordinated with schools and families where allowed by law.

Main Provisions

• Subdivision 1 — Mental health services for students:

  • The Commissioner of Education must arrange for a mental health care provider to deliver mental health services to students via telehealth.
  • The provider must work with schools across the state and obtain parental consent where required by law.

• Subdivision 2 — Mental health care provider requirements:

  • By January 1, 2027, the Commissioner must select a mental health care provider.
  • The selected provider must offer all telehealth services using clinicians licensed in Minnesota.
  • Services must be delivered through telehealth, with appointment availability within one week from referral to the first session.
  • The provider must show a history of billing insurance, including private insurance and Minnesota Medical Assistance (MMA) plans.
  • The provider must demonstrate capacity to serve students statewide in rural, suburban, and urban areas.

• Subdivision 3 — Reporting:

  • The provider must meet annual progress reporting requirements.
  • By July 1 each year, the provider must report metrics such as the number of students who gained access, student engagement, clinical outcomes, and overall cost effectiveness.
  • Data must be disaggregated by district.

• Section 2 — Appropriation and implementation:

  • The Department of Education receives a general fund appropriation in the fiscal year designated.
  • The appropriation supports a grant to the mental health care provider to deliver telehealth mental health services under Minnesota Statutes section 121A.217.

Key Details and Changes to Law

• Creates a new framework (Minnesota Statutes chapter 121A, section 121A.217) to codify telehealth-based mental health services for students.
• Requires the commissioner to select a single provider to deliver statewide telehealth mental health services.
• Establishes service standards, including Minnesota-licensed clinicians, telehealth modality, and the one-week maximum wait from referral to first session.
• Introduces annual performance reporting with district-level data to track access, engagement, outcomes, and cost effectiveness.
• Adds funding via general fund appropriations to support the program through a Department of Education grant to the provider.
• Defines telehealth as it is used in the bill by referencing the existing definition in Minnesota Statutes section 62A.673.
• Emphasizes parental consent where required, aligning with applicable law for student mental health services.
• Signals a commitment to statewide access, including rural, suburban, and urban areas, and a focus on affordability and payer mix through insurance billing (private insurance and MMA).

Implementation Timeline

• By January 1, 2027: The Commissioner must select the mental health care provider.
• Ongoing: Telehealth services operate with weekly appointment availability; annual reporting begins, with data due by July 1 each year.

Significance

• Shifts mental health services for students to be delivered primarily through a centralized, telehealth-based model.
• Incorporates accountability through annual reporting and district-level data.
• Establishes state-funded support to ensure access nationwide within Minnesota, prioritizing timely care and insurance billing experience.

Relevant Terms - mental health services for students - telehealth - licensed in Minnesota - parental consent - commissioner of education - mental health care provider (selected by the state) - statewide access (rural, suburban, urban) - appointment within one week - private insurance - Minnesota Medical Assistance (MMA) - annual progress reporting - data disaggregated by district - Department of Education - grant - Minnesota Statutes section 121A.217 - Minnesota Statutes section 62A.673 - general fund appropriation - telehealth definition (as in section 62A.673)