The House wants about one-quarter of the money to go toward upping reimbursement rates for mental healthcare. Its plan also includes $50 million to help mental health practitioners pay back student loans, and the House also wants to fund mental health facilities.
The Senate, meanwhile, is taking a wider scope. It wants to spend the money on new hospital construction and health sciences training facilities at colleges and universities. A children’s hospital with a mental health center is the largest project in the Senate proposal. The Senate is also looking at measures to bolster rural hospitals.
The House and Senate are working on a compromise for the final budget. An agreement is expected in the coming weeks, the report said.
