April 9, 2024, Toronto, ON — “We are pleased to see the federal government’s commitment to invest $500 million towards creating a new Youth Mental Health Fund to help community health organizations provide mental health services to youth.

Children and youth are facing increased mental health issues like never before. Despite recent new investments in Ontario, decades of chronic underfunding in community mental health care and the current shortage of mental health professionals, combined with the toll of the pandemic and increasing mental health needs, have created a dire situation for the mental health and well-being of young people and their families. Gaps in available care and barriers to accessing it are even higher for Black, Indigenous, racialized, and other equity-deserving communities, who are known to already be at higher risk of experiencing mental health challenges.

Children’s Mental Health Ontario is also pleased that Ontario has signed a bilateral healthcare agreement that will support initiatives to enhance mental health and addictions programs. We look forward to sharing the expertise from our 85 community-based child and youth mental health centres, as well as raising youth and family voices to help inform the implementation of the new Youth Mental Health Fund so that it reaches those most in need and delivers a maximum impact to improve quality, equity, and access for youth mental health treatment and services.”