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Oklahoma Gov. Stitt signed into law Healthy Minds’ top policy priority for the 2022 legislative session.
HB 4106 by Rep. Mark Vancuren (R-Owasso) and Sen. Dewayne Pemberton (R-Muskogee) ensures every school in Oklahoma has a protocol for responding to students in suicidal and mental health crises.
Youth suicidality is at an all-time high, yet despite having procedures to protect students in other emergencies, schools are often unprepared to empower families when a student experiences a mental health crisis. Rep. Vancuren and Sen. Pemberton’s bill establishes partnerships between schools and community behavioral health care providers to develop evidence-based response plans that prioritize family involvement and student anonymity.
Healthy Minds worked with Rep. Vancuren and Sen. Pemberton to develop HB 4106 – which received overwhelming bipartisan support – and coordinated a coalition of health care, education, and business groups to advocate for it. The bill takes effect July 1, 2022.