1.1 	A bill for an act
1.2 	relating to human services; authorizing grants to create urgency rooms for mental 
1.3 	health emergencies; requiring reports; appropriating money.
1.4 	BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA:

1.5 	Section 1. MENTAL HEALTH URGENCY ROOM GRANTS.
 1.6 		Subdivision 1.Establishment. The commissioner of human services must establish a 
1.7 	competitive grant program for medical providers and nonprofits seeking to become a 
1.8 	first-contact resource for youths having a mental health crisis through the use of urgency 
1.9 	rooms.
1.10 		Subd. 2.Goal. The goal of this grant program is to address emergency mental health 
1.11 	needs by creating urgency rooms that can be used by youths age 25 and under having a 
1.12 	mental health crisis as a first-contact resource instead of being admitted to a hospital 
1.13 	emergency room.
1.14 		Subd. 3.Eligible applicants. (a) To be eligible for a grant under this section, applicants 
1.15 	must be:
1.16 	(1) an existing medical provider;
1.17 	(2) a nonprofit that is in the business of providing mental health services; or
1.18 	(3) a nonprofit serving an underserved or rural community that will partner with an 
1.19 	existing medical provider or nonprofit that is in the business of providing mental health 
1.20 	services.
2.1 	(b) Applicants must have licensed mental health specialists on staff, which may include 
2.2 	psychiatrists, licensed therapists, and psychiatric nurses.
2.3 	(c) Applicants must have the capability to:
2.4 	(1) perform a medical evaluation and mental health evaluation upon a youth's admittance 
2.5 	to an urgency room; and
2.6 	(2) accommodate a youth's stay for up to 72 hours.
2.7 		Subd. 4.Applications. Entities seeking grants under this section shall apply to the 
2.8 	commissioner. The grant applicant must include a description of the project that the applicant 
2.9 	is proposing, the amount of money that the applicant is seeking, a proposed budget describing 
2.10 	how the applicant will spend the grant money, and how the applicant intends to meet the 
2.11 	goals of the program. Nonprofits that serve an underserved or rural community that are 
2.12 	partnering with an existing medical provider or nonprofit that is in the business of providing 
2.13 	mental health services must submit a joint application with the partnering entity.
2.14 		Subd. 5.Grant activities. Grantees must use grant money to create urgency rooms to 
2.15 	provide emergency mental health services and become a first-contact resource for youths 
2.16 	having a mental health crisis. Grant money uses may include funding for:
2.17 	(1) expanding current space to create an urgency room;
2.18 	(2) building a new urgency room;
2.19 	(3) performing medical or mental health evaluations;
2.20 	(4) developing a care plan for the youth; or
2.21 	(5) providing recommendations for further care, either at an inpatient or outpatient 
2.22 	facility.
2.23 		Subd. 6.Reporting. (a) Grantees must provide an annual report to the commissioner in 
2.24 	a manner specified by the commissioner on the following:
2.25 	(1) how grant funds were spent;
2.26 	(2) how many youths the grantee served; and
2.27 	(3) how the grantee met the goal of the grant program.
2.28 	(b) The commissioner must provide an annual report to the chairs and ranking minority 
2.29 	members of the legislative committees with jurisdiction over human services regarding 
2.30 	grant activities. This report must be made available to the public.

3.1 	Sec. 2. APPROPRIATION.
 3.2 	$....... in fiscal year 2023 is appropriated from the general fund to the commissioner of 
3.3 	human services for mental health urgency room grants under section 1. This is a onetime 
3.4 	appropriation.