Youth Mental Health
Youth mental health challenges among children and teens continue to rise, while the systems designed to support them urgently need more funding and resources. Too many children are struggling in silence. Mental health promotion, prevention, and early intervention services, as well as a full range of treatments, are needed for children to grow up healthier and develop skills to lead successful and fulfilling lives.
In 2023, one in five high school students seriously considered suicide, and nearly one in 10 attempted suicide. Behind these statistics are children who need care and children’s hospitals face unprecedented demand without the capacity or workforce to meet it.
If Americans are serious about protecting our nation’s future, we must put kids first. That means robust federal investment in the full continuum of pediatric mental and behavioral health services — from prevention to crisis care — and strengthening the specialized workforce children depend on. When policymakers put kids first, we don’t just address a crisis. We build a stronger, healthier generation.
Children are the future
When a child faces a health challenge — from the shock of a first diagnosis to the courage it takes to start a new treatment — their emotional well-being is just as critical as their physical care. That’s why children’s hospitals across the nation offer a comprehensive approach, providing pediatric patients with access to crucial mental health support as they receive care.
