Stronger together: a system of care for youth behavioral health in central virginia - horizon behavioral health will implement a comprehensive system of care (SOC) for children, youth, and young…

The Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded Horizon Behavioral Health $2,000,000 on September 30, 2026, under the Comprehensive Community Mental Health Services for Children with Serious Emotional Disturbances program (CFDA 93.104).

Horizon Behavioral Health will implement a comprehensive system of care for children, youth, and young adults ages 5–21 with or at risk for serious emotional disturbance across Central Virginia. The project will establish a centralized point of access, expand care coordination, strengthen school partnerships, and improve cross-system collaboration across urban and rural communities with significant behavioral health workforce shortages. The system of care will deliver evidence-based practices including trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy, multisystemic therapy, cognitive-behavioral therapy, eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, adolescent community reinforcement approach, coordinated specialty care for first episode psychosis, and high-fidelity wraparound services. The project will serve up to 800 youth annually, with the goal of improving access to coordinated, family-driven, trauma-informed care while reducing crisis utilization and strengthening long-term behavioral health outcomes.

Work is performed in Lynchburg, Virginia. The period of performance runs from September 30, 2026, through September 29, 2030. The assistance type is a Project Grant.

Stronger together: a system of care for youth behavioral health in central virginia - horizon behavioral health will implement a comprehensive system of care (SOC) for children, youth, and young adults ages 5-21 with or at risk for serious emotional disturbance across central virginia. Serving urban and rural communities with significant behavioral health workforce shortages, the project will establish a centralized point of access, expand care coordination, strengthen school partnerships, and improve cross-system collaboration. Evidence-based practices include trauma-focused CBT, multisystemic therapy, CBT, emdr, adolescent community reinforcement approach, coordinated specialty care for first episode psychosis, and high-fidelity wraparound. The project will serve up to 800 youth annually, improving access to coordinated, family-driven, trauma-informed care while reducing crisis utilization and strengthening long-term behavioral health outcomes.