Children’s Hospital & Medical Center | Inside Business

Children’s President and CEO Chanda Chac�n Advocates for Pediatric Mental Health Care Alongside U.S. Surgeon General, HHS Secretary Children’s Hospital & Medical Center President and CEO Chanda Chac�n, MPH, FACHE, was in Washington, D.C., last week to advocate for pediatric mental health care. Representing Children’s, the region’s pediatric health care leader, Chac�n met with congressional policymakers and peer health care leaders from across the country as a member of the Children’s Hospital Association. Chac�n participated in a roundtable discussion about pediatric mental health care with U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, M.D., MBA, and Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra. Together with other health care leaders and behavioral health experts, Chac�n shared her insights and had an opportunity to encourage members of Congress to act on needs related to mental health. She advocated for H.R. 7236, the Strengthen Kids’ Mental Health Now Act, which is bipartisan legislation that would increase reimbursement for pediatric behavioral health services and create grant programs to support pediatric behavioral health care integration, coordination, infrastructure and workforce training. Chac�n has been a vocal leader in advocating for the needs of children in response to the nationwide pediatric mental health crisis that has emerged in recent years. She spearheaded an effort this year that resulted in Children’s securing $10 million in federal funding allocated to the state of Nebraska by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. Children’s will use the funds to develop, pilot and open innovative pediatric mental health urgent care centers to meet the growing needs of Nebraska children and families.