Among the many issues on legislators’ minds this session — such as taxes, crime, energy, COVID-19 recovery, the economy and government accountability — members of both parties have been naming mental health as a focus.

Widespread support for broadening access to mental health care stems from the widely held belief that people’s mental health has deteriorated due to the isolation and other factors caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

As state Rep. Christine Conley, D-Groton, said: “COVID has increased the need for mental health for adults and children."

State senators and representatives from both parties, including Sen. Heather Somers, R-Groton, as well as Gov. Ned Lamont have said there needs to be legislation on mental health this session. Somers helped engineer a Republican proposal with a series of policies geared toward greater access to mental health for children and, in general, maternal and workforce mental health, among other issues.

Somers touched on several aspects of the proposal, some of which have been introduced or discontinued before.

“Family care coordinators are meant to be in the school system — not paid for by taxpayers, I don’t want any mandates on school boards — but we could use some of the COVID relief funds" to hire these coordinators, Somers said. “They make the connection between school and mental health services, because school is the first place you notice it.”

She said in conversations with constituents, some have reported having to leave the state and go to Rhode Island or Massachusetts for mental health care because they couldn’t find someone here in Connecticut. Family care coordinators would find care within the state for them, she said.

In order to attract or keep more clinical social workers in the state, Somers and her party are supporting requiring the state Husky program to "expand the professionals that qualify for reimbursement to include a licensed social worker with a master’s degree who is working under the supervision of a psychologist or licensed clinical social worker,” according to a summary of the proposal.

Somers said social workers must work for 3,000 hours under supervision to be licensed, but finding that work and being paid appropriately for it can be difficult. “Certain insurance companies will pay for clients to visit you if you’re a master’s degreed social worker under supervision,” Somers said. “Husky, our state Medicaid, will not pay for that."

Another aspect of the Republicans’ multipronged mental health proposal is a study on the effects of social media on children. Republicans are suggesting the University of Connecticut conduct the study.

“The parameters haven’t been set yet, but we have some ideas of looking at what would it be like in a certain environment, most likely a school, that doesn’t allow phones at all versus a school that does,” Somers said. “Words can really leave wounds, and I don’t think adolescents who are going through a lot of changes in their lives at that point are equipped to handle some of the negativity.”

Somers said Republicans are trying to expand telehealth options to help people who can’t seek medical attention in person, whether due to COVID-19, lack of transportation or other reasons. She acknowledged that doctors would often rather work in person, but telehealth can make health care accessible for segments of the population where it wasn’t before.

Other Republican policy proposals on health can be found at bit.ly/ctgophealth22.

Following the governor’s State of the State address on Wednesday, Conley noted she's glad mental health issues are getting more attention. She cited a mental health for inmates bill that she and state Sen. Cathy Osten, D-Sprague, are pushing, and added, “We have to do more with the stigma of mental health so that people who are having struggles get their health care.”

In a news release declaring support for their bill, Conley and Osten said Connecticut needs to better address mental illness among inmates.

“I think the desire is there on the part of all legislators and advocates, so this is a year where we should make some solid progress," Osten said. "In July 2020, The Connecticut Sentencing Commission reported that 81% of female inmates and 28% of male inmates are chronically mentally ill. And I think even those numbers are low. Since the closure of state psychiatric institutions, our state prisons are increasingly being used as de facto psychiatric institutions.”

Conley said Osten has put forth the same or similar bills in years past.

“A lot of us has cared about mental health for several years, but I’m glad the rest are joining us,” Conley said of her fellow legislators. She and Osten are calling for the creation of a task force to study the issue of mental health among inmates and find ways to better support them.

The task force will identify the mental health status of the state's inmate population and assess how much time someone with a mental health condition serves of their sentence compared to other inmates. The panel also will weigh having the Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security oversee certain inmates until discharge; identifying any childhood physical or sexual trauma they may have; conducting medical tests to identify any possible brain seizure activity; and identifying rates of recidivism — the likelihood of committing another crime — among inmates with mental health needs and what, if any, services they had received since discharge, according to the news release.

Other Democrats recently told The Day they also will be focusing on mental health.

"My colleagues are incredibly focused on mental health issues because we're seeing an unbelievable impact on people's mental well-being," state Sen. Norm Needleman, D-Essex, said. "Some of the impacts are less tangible in an overt way until it's too late — drug addiction, suicide rates, are a problem. I think money invested there is well spent."

State Rep. Anthony Nolan, D-New London, said improving mental health care for children is his top priority.

"I have a hard time with the latest reports especially from our child advocate that shows that our children in the system are not getting proper mental health assistance," he said. "I plan on making it very evident and trying to go through the right channels to make sure that funding is shifted either to make sure we hire the appropriate personnel and/or make sure that our children are able to get the care they need."

s.spinella@theday.com