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Behavioral Health Services Act

Behavioral Health Services Act​ Population-Based Prevention Program Final Plan​

​​The Calif​ornia Department of Public Health's (CDPH) Final Plan (PDF) ​provides the community and other behavioral health stakeholders and partners with the department's strategic approach to implement Behavioral Health Transformation. The Plan also contains information about the Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) statutory requirements. The CDPH Behavioral Health Services Act: Population-Based Prevention Program Final Plan is comprised of Phase 1 and 2 Guides and incorporates stakeholder and community input (including input received from formal Tribal consultation). The Plan covers BHSA Population-Based Prevention Strategies beginning in July 2026 for a three-year period including Fiscal Years 2026–29. This timeline, as part of the broader BHSA, aligns with the 3-year County Integrated Planning​ effort to facilitate cross-systems collaboration and support strategic alignment, as needed, for coordinated and complementary approaches.

The Plan will be updated regularly to clarify and provide details on the implementation of the Statewide Population-Based Prevention Program. This Plan may also be updated based on outcomes of prevention efforts or as emerging needs and issues arise.​​​​​​ ​

See the BHSA Final Plan​ (PDF)​

If you are having difficulty accessing The Final Plan, please contact CDPH at BHSA​info@cdp​h.ca.gov​ to request this information in an alternate format.​

Executive Summary  ​

Table of Contents

​Introduction

The California Department of Public Health’s (CDPH) Final Plan (Plan) provides the community and other behavioral health stakeholders and partners with the department’s strategic approach to implement Behavioral Health Transformation. The Plan also contains information about the Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) statutory requirements. The CDPH Behavioral Health Services Act: Population-Based Prevention Program Final Plan is comprised of Phase 1 and 2 Guides and incorporates stakeholder and community input (including input received from formal Tribal consultation). The Plan represents the final operational and administrative components, including the implementation strategies and funding investments for each component beginning in July 2026 for a three-year period including Fiscal Years 2026-2029. This timeline, as part of the broader BHSA, aligns with the 3-year County Integrated Planning effort to facilitate cross-systems collaboration and support strategic alignment at the state and local level for coordinated and complementary approaches.  ​

Behavioral health refers to emotional, psychological, and social well-being. Public health approaches addressing behavioral health by focusing on mental health, substance use, interpersonal relationships, and patterns of behavior. From a population-level, primary prevention, and socio-ecological perspective, CDPH recognizes behavioral health to include not only the strengths, distress, and resilience of individuals, but also that of families, communities, and organizations. ​ 

Center for Social and Behavioral Health

​To strategically invest BHSA funds with greater efficiency and strong leadership, improved coordination across the vast array of existing CDPH behavioral health related programmatic experience, expertise and initiatives, CDPH is developing a more centralized and coordinated structure through development the Center for Social and Behavioral Health (Office) in 2026. This office aims to centralize and coordinate behavioral health activities, ensuring leadership, compliance, oversight, and alignment across various programs, and promotes behavioral health as a public health priority.  ​

The BHSA emphasizes serving populations with the highest needs and at greatest risk for negative outcomes along the behavioral health care continuum. Limited funding provided for population-based prevention dictates a focused approach on addressing the most critical needs and gaps and using data and community input to drive strategic investment. The Final Plan outlines the following list of specific populations for strategic investment1:  

  • ​Black, Indigenous, Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander and Middle Eastern populations
  • Children, youth, and families
  • Immigrant and refugee populations​
  • LGBTQIA+ populations
  • Older adults
  • People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities​
  • Tribes
  • Veterans​

CDPH will also continue to monitor the prevalence of negative behavioral health outcomes in other populations that have experienced systemic racism and discrimination.   ​

CDPH developed statewide prevention strategies to align with the statewide BHSA behavioral health goals. These strategies leverage existing expertise from various offices within CDPH to ensure comprehensive and effective interventions, with a focus on stigma and discrimination reduction. The Final Plan outlines details for the following program components:  

  • ​Statewide Policy Initiatives – to address new and emerging behavioral issues and threats, and novel and emerging substance use  
  • Focused Statewide Behavioral Health Strategies – includes the investment in CalHOPE and an established set of focused strategies  
  • Statewide Awareness Campaigns – includes investment in maintenance of ongoing campaign assets (Never a Bother; Take Space to Pause; Live Beyond and Facts Fight Fentanyl) and development of three new awareness campaigns:  

    • ​Older Adults  ​Suicide and Self-Harm Prevention – focused on young adults, older adults and veterans  

    • 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and Behavioral Health Services 

    • Substance Use Prevention  

  • ​Training and Technical Assistance – supports CDPH expertise to ensure success of policy work and implementation of prevention strategies  

  • Community Engagement – includes development of an Implementation Workgroup  

  • Statewide Evaluation – dedicated staff and resources to monitor the effectiveness of all BHSA population-based prevention activities, including those within CDPH. This includes data collection, analysis, and reporting to ensure transparency and continuous improvement in behavioral health outcomes.  ​

To support and complement state-level efforts, CDPH will provide funding to mobilize local reach of state-led and state-defined strategies, aligned with the goals and outcomes of BHSA. Locally funded implementation partners will support infrastructure for strong coordination, cross-cutting efforts, and systems change at the local level. The Final Plan outlines the following funding to develop local reach of statewide strategies:  

Community-Based Organizations and Tribes: $34.8M in 2026/27; $45.3M in 2027/28-2028/29  

  • Community-Defined Evidence Based Practices (CDEP) and Evidence-Based Practices Program  
  • Trusted Messenger Campaign Program 
  • Regional Policy Research and Development 
  • Regional Implementation of Focused Strategies 
  • 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Outreach Campaign Program 

Dedicated Funding for Tribes - $10M

 Training and Technical Assistance Funding (open to CBOs and other non-governmental entities) - $8.5M  

  • To support statewide training and technical assistance in specialized areas and unique populations, including:  

    • ​Older Adults  

    • Veterans  

    • 988 Crisis Services  

Local Health Jurisdictions - $12M:  

  • ​Local Health Jurisdiction (LHJ) Program: Funding for the 61 LHJs to act as Local Prevention Coordinators and convene local prevention coalitions.   ​

The BHSA framework and CDPH Final Plan emphasize the integration of local prevention coordination into the LHJ Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) processes. As part of the funding directed to LHJs, they will be required to integrate the convening and coalition process into the required LHJ CHA/CHIP by 2028/29 – to continue to advance ongoing alignment of local planning processes, in coordination with Medi-Cal Managed Care Plans and county behavioral health departments.  ​

During Spring of 2026, CDPH intends to release specific funding requirements or Request for Proposals (RFPs) related to the various funding opportunities mentioned in the Final Plan. CDPH will also release a Community-Defined Evidence Practices (CDEPs) resource guide and host a CDEP public webinar to support local implementation partners. During Summer 2026, CDPH will also release the application process for participation in the Implementation Workgroup. By late 2026, CDPH will release a comprehensive evaluation framework to provide detailed guidance on statewide evaluation measures. CDPH will host a public webinar and release the framework for public comment.  

This information will be publicly posted on the CDPH website and announced via the BHSA email distribution list. Individuals are encouraged to sign up for the BHSA email list to receive updates directly.  

Program Component 

FY 2026/27 (in Millions) 

Percent of Budget 

FY 2027/28 & 2028/29       (in Millions) 

Percent of Budget 

Statewide Policy Initiative 

$1.4M 

1% 

$3.4M 

3% 

Statewide Prevention Strategies 

$5.7M 

4% 

$15.7M 

12% 

Statewide Awareness Campaigns 

$40.3M 

30% 

$14.3M 

11% 

Training and Technical Assistance 

$5.0M 

4% 

$6.5M 

5% 

Community Engagement 

$1.5M 

1% 

$1.5M 

1% 

Data and Evaluation 

$7.9M 

6% 

$9.9M 

7% 

Local Health Jurisdiction Program 

$12.0M 

9% 

$12.0M 

9% 

CBO Funding 

$34.8M 

26% 

$45.3M 

34% 

Tribal Program 

$10.0M 

7% 

$10.0M 

7% 

Training and Technical Assistance Grants 

$8.5M 

6% 

$8.5M 

6% 

TOTAL Annual (by Component) 

$127.0M 

  

$127.0M 

  

Core Staffing 

$7.8M 

6% 

$7.8M 

6% 

Total BHSA Budget 

$134.8M 

  

$134.8M 

  

 

 

 

 

 

Component 

Budget 

  

Budget 

  

Statewide Strategies 

$69.5M 

52% 

$59.0M 

44% 

Local Health Jurisdiction Funding 

$12.0M 

9% 

$12.0M 

9% 

CBO Funding 

$34.8M 

26% 

$45.3M 

34% 

Dedicated funding for Tribal Entities 

$10.0M 

7% 

$10.0M 

7% 

Training and Technical Assistance 

$8.5M 

6% 

$8.5M 

6% 

Total 

$134.8M 

  

$134.8M 

 ​


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