In Colorado, access to behavioral health care is more than a policy issue — it’s a lifeline. For thousands of individuals and families, the system can mean the difference between hope and hardship. Today, we stand at the threshold of a profound transformation — one that promises to reimagine how behavioral health is delivered and experienced in our state.

By Kara Johnson-Hufford | March 11, 2025 If you’ve seen the news, you know Colorado’s mental and physical health care safety net is in crisis. Lay-offs and closures in clinics, hospitals, and centers across the state have made that point visibly and abundantly clear. The number of uninsured in Colorado grows weekly, a reality that providers…

By Kara Johnson-Hufford A teen struggling with mental health issues caused by a rocky home life finds support in their school-based clinic. A new mother facing postpartum depression seeks help at her local crisis clinic, ensuring stability for herself and her young family. A rancher, overwhelmed by the demands of maintaining their operation, shares stories…

By Kara Johnson-Hufford For Colorado’s safety net providers, these are challenging times. For Colorado’s Community Mental Health Centers, it’s hard to see the path forward because uncertainty in a host of areas clouds the picture. Why the apprehension? Because many of our state’s bedrock, community-based mental health and substance use disorder providers are on the…

By Kara Johnson-Hufford Here are two things we know about the state of mental health in Colorado: The number of individuals who need services and supports for all sorts of mental health conditions is increasing and the amount of funding the state has to invest in services and supports is not keeping pace. It’s an…

By Kara Johnson-Hufford  We’ve all seen and heard a lot about the challenges we face as a state around our mental health and substance use disorder treatment systems. An increasing number of people in need of services and supports, a declining number of people working in the system and funding for all of this that…

By Kara Johnson-Hufford Recently, the mayors of Colorado’s three largest cities made a public plea for help in three newspapers. Their point was simple: If we leave people with serious mentally illness (SMI) to fend for themselves in our communities and on our streets, we are endangering them and hurting our communities.   The mayors of…

By Kara Johnson-Hufford, CBHC CEO There is no doubt that Colorado invests significant state dollars in community mental health centers and clinics across Colorado with about $500 million flowing to the 17 centers that blanket the state. It’s important to understand what Colorado’s return on that investment is in lives saved, quality of life improved…

By Kara Johnson-Hufford, CBHC CEO Individuals with serious, persistent mental illness need a variety of care, supports and wrap around services to successfully manage their often-multiple challenges. Community mental health centers were built for just this purpose. The initial community mental health center system was built to take care of the most seriously mentally ill…

By Kara Johnson-Hufford, CBHC CEO In Greeley, teachers self-administered a survey in 1913 that revealed the need for a mental health center for their students. When the center opened, a child psychiatrist provided services one day a month. Now known as North Range Behavioral Health, the center has been continuously providing services and expanding well…