Relating to mental health services at public institutions of higher education

The bill requires the state board of regents and the board of directors of each community college to designate an expert panel to develop and implement specified policies and procedures relating to mental health. Specified policies and procedures include advising students, faculty, and staff on the proper procedures for identifying and addressing the needs of students exhibiting symptoms of mental health conditions and promoting understanding of the requirements of section 504 of the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The bill also requires all resident assistants in a student housing facility, advisors, and campus security officers of an institution to participate in a national mental health first aid training course. The bill requires each institution to develop and implement a peer support program utilizing student peers to support students living with mental health conditions on campus. The bill requires peer support programs to utilize best practices for peer support. Such best practices include use of the tenets of the recovery model, as defined in the bill, for mental health, adequate planning and preparation, and clearly articulated policies. The bill requires each institution to establish strategic partnerships with local mental health service providers to improve overall campus mental wellness and augment on-campus capacity. The strategic partnerships shall include linkage agreements, as defined in the bill, with off-campus mental health service providers that establish a process for referrals for students when needs cannot be met on campus due to the limits of on-campus capacity or preference of the student. The bill provides additional functions of such strategic partnerships, including meeting a benchmark ratio of clinical, nonstudent staff members to students and reporting on the ratio to the general assembly and the governor. The bill requires the department of health and human services, in consultation with the state board of regents and the Iowa association for community colleges, to establish a mental health technical assistance center. The bill specifies responsibilities of the center, including developing standardized policies for medical leave related to mental health conditions for students, providing tailored support to institutions in reviewing policies related to students living with mental health conditions and their academic standing, and developing statewide standards and best practices for partnerships between local mental health agencies and institutions. The center also assists institutions with implementation of various provisions of the bill. The bill requires each institution to evaluate the specified programs or functions provided in the bill for effectiveness and quality. The bill specifies monitoring measures to be used for evaluation of each program or function.3.2, subsection 3, which would relieve a political subdivision from complying with a state mandate if funding for the cost of the state mandate is not provided or specified. Therefore, political subdivisions are required to comply with any state mandate included in the bill.