Take Action Mental Health in Your State

Massachusetts

By The Numbers

943,000

Number of K-12 Students (2022 Projection)i

67,000
Children with major depressionii
44,000

Children with major depression who do not receive treatmentiii

1:825

Ratio of School Psychologists to Students
(Recommended Ratio 1:500)

1:1,522

Ratio of School Social Workers to Students
(Recommended Ratio 1:250)

1:395

Ratio of School Counselors to Students
(Recommended Ratio 1:250)

Take Action
in Massachusetts

There is a national emergency in children’s mental health. Children and youth are experiencing soaring rates of anxiety, depression, trauma, loneliness, and suicidality. 

Take Action

Children and youth are experiencing soaring rates of anxiety, depression, trauma, loneliness, and suicidality. Mental health challenges can affect success at school and in life, yet few students get the help they need to thrive.

The Hopeful Futures Campaign, a coalition of national organizations, is committed to ensuring that every student has access to effective and supportive school mental health care. The campaign’s school mental health report cards highlight accomplishments and provide important action steps to help address the children’s mental health crisis in every state.

At A Glance: State School Mental Health Policies

School Mental Health Professionals:

School-Family-Community Partnerships:

Teacher and Staff Training:

Funding
Supports:

Well-Being Checks:

Healthy School Climate:

Skills for Life Success:

Mental Health Education:

Little or no progress achieved

Some progress achieved

Meaningful progress achieved

Substantial progress achieved

HOW MASSACHUSETTS COMPARES

State Rankings from Mental Health America iv  

2015

2020

2021

2022

Overall State Rank for Youth Mental Health

6

5

5

5

Youth with At Least One Major Depressive Episode in the Past Year

41,000/8.28%

66,000/13.30%

67,000/13.86%

75,000/15.61%

Youth with Major Depressive Episodes in the
Past Year Who Did Not Receive Treatment

Not Asked

38,000/54.5%

41,000/61.2%

44,000/56.80%

Youth with Major Severe Depressive Episodes in the Past Year

Not Asked

50,000/10.5%

40,000/8.5%

48,000/10.50%

Youth with Severe Major Depressive Episodes
Who Received Some Consistent Treatment

Not Asked

22,000/46.00%

15,000/37.7%

19,000/42.20%

Students Identified with Emotional Disturbance
for an Individualized Education Program

14,154/16.51%

16,338/18.81%

16,935/19.51%

17,455/20.22%

Youth with Private Insurance That Did Not
Cover Mental or Emotional Problems

32,413/25.0%

10,000/2.0%

4,000/1.2%

5,000/1.90%

Youth with Substance Use Disorder in the Past Year

35,000/7.03%

21,000/4.26%

19,000/3.92%

20,000/4.10%

i. Projections of education statistics to 2022. National Center of Education Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2021, from https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014051.pdf.
ii. The state of Mental Health in America. Mental Health America. (n.d.). Retrieved November 9, 2021, from https://mhanational.org/issues/state-mental-health-america.
iii. The state of Mental Health in America. Mental Health America. (n.d.). Retrieved November 9, 2021, from https://mhanational.org/issues/state-mental-health-america.
iv. The state of Mental Health in America. Mental Health America. (n.d.). Retrieved November 9, 2021, from https://mhanational.org/issues/state-mental-health-america.
Massachusetts

By The Numbers

943,000

Number of K-12 Students (2022 Projection)i

67,000
Children with major depressionii
44,000

Children with major depression who do not receive treatmentiii

1:825

Ratio of School Psychologists to Students
(Recommended Ratio 1:500)

1:1,522

Ratio of School Social Workers to Students
(Recommended Ratio 1:250)

1:395

Ratio of School Counselors to Students
(Recommended Ratio 1:250)

Take Action
in Massachusetts

There is a national emergency in children’s mental health. Children and youth are experiencing soaring rates of anxiety, depression, trauma, loneliness, and suicidality. 

Take Action

Children and youth are experiencing soaring rates of anxiety, depression, trauma, loneliness, and suicidality. Mental health challenges can affect success at school and in life, yet few students get the help they need to thrive.

The Hopeful Futures Campaign, a coalition of national organizations, is committed to ensuring that every student has access to effective and supportive school mental health care. The campaign’s school mental health report cards highlight accomplishments and provide important action steps to help address the children’s mental health crisis in every state.

At A Glance: State School Mental Health Policies

School Mental Health Professionals:

School-Family-Community Partnerships:

Teacher and Staff Training:

Funding
Supports:

Well-Being Checks:

Healthy School Climate:

Skills for Life Success:

Mental Health Education:

Little or no progress achieved

Some progress achieved

Meaningful progress achieved

Substantial progress achieved

HOW MASSACHUSETTS COMPARES

State Rankings from Mental Health America iv  

2015

2020

2021

2022

Overall State Rank for Youth Mental Health

6

5

5

5

Youth with At Least One Major Depressive Episode in the Past Year

41,000/8.28%

66,000/13.30%

67,000/13.86%

75,000/15.61%

Youth with Major Depressive Episodes in the
Past Year Who Did Not Receive Treatment

Not Asked

38,000/54.5%

41,000/61.2%

44,000/56.80%

Youth with Major Severe Depressive Episodes in the Past Year

Not Asked

50,000/10.5%

40,000/8.5%

48,000/10.50%

Youth with Severe Major Depressive Episodes
Who Received Some Consistent Treatment

Not Asked

22,000/46.00%

15,000/37.7%

19,000/42.20%

Students Identified with Emotional Disturbance
for an Individualized Education Program

14,154/16.51%

16,338/18.81%

16,935/19.51%

17,455/20.22%

Youth with Private Insurance That Did Not
Cover Mental or Emotional Problems

32,413/25.0%

10,000/2.0%

4,000/1.2%

5,000/1.90%

Youth with Substance Use Disorder in the Past Year

35,000/7.03%

21,000/4.26%

19,000/3.92%

20,000/4.10%

i. Projections of education statistics to 2022. National Center of Education Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved November 11, 2021, from https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2014/2014051.pdf.
ii. The state of Mental Health in America. Mental Health America. (n.d.). Retrieved November 9, 2021, from https://mhanational.org/issues/state-mental-health-america.
iii. The state of Mental Health in America. Mental Health America. (n.d.). Retrieved November 9, 2021, from https://mhanational.org/issues/state-mental-health-america.
iv. The state of Mental Health in America. Mental Health America. (n.d.). Retrieved November 9, 2021, from https://mhanational.org/issues/state-mental-health-america.

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School Mental Health Professionals

Little or no progress achieved

School psychologists, social workers, and counselors who, together, provide a range of necessary mental health services in schools. 

 

Current Policy:

  • School psychologists: Massachusetts has one school psychologist for every 825 students (the recommended ratio is 1:500).
  • School social workers: Massachusetts has one school social worker for every 1,522 students (the recommended ratio is 1:250).
  • School counselors: Massachusetts has one school counselor for every 396 students (the recommended ratio is 1:250).

 

Policy Opportunity:

  • Invest in significantly improving the ratios of school psychologists, school social workers, and counselors in K-12, including through telehealth partnerships and workforce programs that incentivize careers in mental health.

School-Family-Community Partnerships

Substantial progress achieved

Policies that support and enable schools to engage with families and community partners.   

Current Policy:

  • Family/community engagement: Massachusetts has policies requiring family engagement. 
  • Mental health partnership: The Department of Elementary and Secondary Education created a learning collaborative to establish comprehensive school mental health systems. DESE 

Teacher and Staff Training:

Some progress achieved

Policies that support training of teachers and staff in mental health, substance use, and suicide prevention. 

Current Policy:

  • Teacher/staff training: State statutes and policies require school districts to provide a minimum of two hours of suicide awareness and prevention training every three years to all licensed school personnel. 

Policy Opportunity:

  • Expand on existing training requirements to ensure K-12 teachers and staff receive regular training on mental health conditions and substance use conditions, including available school and community-based services and resources.

Funding Supports

Substantial progress achieved

Policies that help support funding of school mental health services for Medicaid-eligible students.   

 

Current Policy:

  • Medicaid coverage: State Medicaid program covers school-based mental health services for all Medicaid-eligible students.
  • Medicaid telehealth: State Medicaid program covers school-based mental health services delivered via telehealth for all EPSDT services, which include mental health.

Well-Being Checks

Little or no progress achieved

Regular checks of mental wellness that help identify students and staff who may need support.   

 

Current Policy:

  • No well-being checks required.

 

Policy Opportunity:

  • Require annual well-being checks for all students and staff in K-12.

Healthy School Climate

Some progress achieved

Policies that foster safe, supportive schools, including anti-bullying policies, school climate surveys, inclusive environment (anti-discrimination) policies, excused absences for mental health, alternatives to exclusionary discipline, and suicide prevention programs.

 

Current Policy:

  • School climate survey: Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 71, § 37O (2020) Requires development of a school climate survey to be administered at least once every four years.
  • Anti-bullying: Gen. Laws Ann. ch. 71, § 37O (2020) prohibits bullying by students, staff and other personnel; requires schools to recognize students who might be more vulnerable to bullying and make a plan with specific steps to support these students.

 

Policy Opportunity:

  • Enact legislation to address additional healthy school climate policies, such as promoting an inclusive environment through anti-discrimination policies, permitting excused absences for mental health concerns, requiring age-appropriate suicide prevention education for students, and requiring adoption of alternatives to exclusionary discipline that keep youth in school, with services and supports to get their lives on track.

Skills for Life Success

Little or no progress achieved

Skills, such as responsible decision-making, relationship skills, and self-management, that help students succeed in school and life.   

Current Policy:

  • Life skills: The Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education provides resources for, but does not require, life skills competencies in K-12 (CASEL).  

 

Policy Opportunity:

  • Establish existing education standards for K-12 life skills competencies in statute.

Mental Health Education

Meaningful progress achieved

Health education in K-12 that includes instruction on mental health.   

Current Policy:

Policy Opportunity:

  • Require K-12 health education to explicitly include education on mental health, similar to legislation passed by New York and Virginia.