The ACT government has announced it will allocate $15.8 million towards extending mental health services. The bulk of the funding, $14.1 million, will go towards extending the Police, Ambulance and Clinician Early Response (PACER) program until 2024.
"Four out of five of the people PACER sees are able to stay in the community and access the support services they need there instead of having to go to emergency," Mental Health Minister Emma Davidson said.
The remainder of the investment will go to government mental health programmes and mental health organisations including the Mental Health Foundation, Menslink, Mental Illness Education ACT, the Safe Haven Cafe, Access Mental Health Service, and the Home Assessment Acute Response Team.
The government also announced a $3.156 million investment for Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAHMS).
Chief Minister Andrew Barr said young people ware at a heightened risk of poor mental health due to COVID-19's impact.
ACTCOSS chief executive Dr Emma Campbell said Wednesday's announcement was a positive step towards improving and expanding mental health support services, but said community-based mental health services still needed more funding.
"Community-based services are best placed to offer early support and prevent unnecessary, costly and distressing hospital admissions," she said.
