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6/30/2025
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New law requires insurers to cover youth crisis response services
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STATE HOUSE — Legislation sponsored by Sen. Alana M. DiMario and Rep. Teresa A. Tanzi to provide stable funding for mobile youth crisis response teams by requiring private insurance to cover their services has been signed into law.
“It’s time to treat mobile crisis response as essential components of our state’s health care system,” said Senator DiMario (D-Dist. 36, Narragansett, North Kingstown, New Shoreham), who works as a licensed mental health counselor in private practice. “Our state pilot program has been enormously successful in providing better outcomes for children while saving money and resources by diverting patients from emergency rooms. We want to make sure that anyone who is calling to help a child in crisis is able to access this care, no matter what type of insurance they have.”
The legislation (2025-S 0263A, 2024-H 6118A) requires private insurers to cover the costs of mobile crisis response and stabilization services (MRSS) for youth. These services provide trained behavioral health clinicians in response to behavioral health crisis calls, who are better able than local emergency medical services to deescalate crises and provide the crisis counseling and follow-up needed to keep youth out of emergency rooms. This provides better patient outcomes for youth in crisis and reduces the strain on overburdened emergency departments.
“Our experience with MRSS has demonstrated that it is a much more effective approach to helping kids their families in a mental health crisis. Why send kids to a setting like an emergency room when there’s another route available that is more appropriate and supportive, more successful and more cost-effective?” said Representative Tanzi (D-Dist. 34, South Kingstown, Narragansett). “All children in crisis should have access to this resource, and with this legislation, they will.”
The Rhode Island Executive Office of Health and Human Services began a MRSS pilot program in November 2022, during which 92% of youth were stabilized and diverted from local emergency departments. Medicaid now covers youth MRSS in Rhode Island, but Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Rhode Island is currently the only private insurer that voluntarily covers these services. The legislation aims to incorporate youth MRSS into the standard continuum of care by funding these services directly through all private insurers in the state.
“MRSS is considered the ‘gold standard’ in crisis care for children and youth,” said Susan Orban, director of the Washington County Coalition for Children. “[This] bill assures more families with commercial insurance will be able to access these quality crisis services for their children.”
For more information, contact:
Tristan Grau, Publicist
State House Room B20
Providence, RI 02903
401.222.4935
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