Sacramento, California – For years, school mental health programs have faced the same difficult question: What happens when temporary grant money runs out? California is now answering with a funding system designed to keep care available long after the initial investment ends.
The CYBHI Fee Schedule is turning public schools and colleges into more dependable access points for behavioral health support. Students can receive covered services where they already spend much of their day, while families pay nothing.
Created through California’s Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, the first-in-the-nation program reimburses outpatient mental health and substance use disorder services delivered at or near public education sites. It covers students under age 26 enrolled in public TK-12 schools, California Community Colleges and other participating public institutions of higher education.
Read also: A single lightning strike could ignite California’s next fast-moving wildfire
Eligible services include individual and group counseling, behavioral health screenings, assessments, crisis intervention, care coordination and help with managing stress, anxiety and depression. Covered care does not affect a family’s existing insurance, deductible, copay or coinsurance.
Schools and public colleges can bill Medi-Cal, commercial health plans and disability insurers. Applicable payers must reimburse services at or above rates published by the state, even when a provider is outside the insurer’s network.
The system has already financed more than 230,000 claims and generated $11.3 million in new revenue for school-linked behavioral health services. That money gives districts a continuing funding source for counselors, wellness coaches, prevention programs and crisis response rather than forcing them to depend entirely on short-term grants.
Read also: Sacramento launches educational bin inspections without fines or penalties
The progress is documented in the CYBHI Legacy Report, Advancing Behavioral Health: From Moment to Movement, released in late June 2026. California invested more than $4 billion in the broader initiative, including over $2.2 billion awarded to more than 1,600 organizations carrying out nearly 2,200 activities.
More than 70,000 people received support along behavioral health workforce pathways, including over 4,000 Certified Wellness Coaches. Digital services such as Soluna and BrightLife Kids reached more than 500,000 children, young people and families across all 58 counties.
An independent Mathematica evaluation also found higher youth behavioral healthcare use, declines in emergency visits for several behavioral health conditions, reductions in suicidal ideation and youth suicide deaths, and drops in chronic absenteeism and mental health-related absences.
“Protecting the health and wellbeing of children is some of the most important work we do,” Gov. Gavin Newsom said.
Although CYBHI is entering its legacy phase, the Fee Schedule represents a lasting structural change. As another school year approaches, California’s focus is moving beyond temporary crisis response toward sustained prevention and care delivered directly on campus. Additional guidance is available through the California Department of Health Care Services.