Sponsors (26)
Official title: To address the behavioral health workforce shortages through support for peer support specialists, and for other purposes.
Introduced April 8, 2025 by Andrea Salinas · Last progress April 8, 2025
The bill would expand, standardize, and federally support peer recovery and behavioral-health support services—improving access, workforce recognition, and program quality—while imposing costs, administrative burdens, potential short-term service disruptions, and some public-safety and budget trade-offs that states, providers, and taxpayers must absorb.
People with mental health or substance use disorders will gain broader access to standardized, certified peer support services and coordinated recovery supports across states and federally funded programs.
Peer support specialists and related hiring entities will get formal recognition, clearer workforce data, training and career pathways, improving recruitment, retention, and service capacity.
States, providers, and programs will have clearer, evidence-based standards and federal guidance (alignment with National Practice Guidelines and SAMHSA competencies) to promote more consistent care quality and program planning.
States, smaller providers, and employers will face administrative, certification, training, and HR/payroll costs to implement new standards and certification systems, which could strain budgets and small programs.
Some current peer workers who lack the new formal certifications could be excluded from providing services until certified, disrupting service continuity for people who rely on them.
Creating and staffing a new federal office and producing required reports increases federal spending and administrative workload, potentially raising costs for taxpayers and agencies.
Based on analysis of 5 sections of legislative text.
Creates a SAMHSA Office of Recovery, defines and federalizes recognition of peer support specialists, mandates an SOC occupational code, and orders a federal report on background-check barriers.
Creates a new Office of Recovery at SAMHSA, defines and standardizes the peer support specialist role, and requires the OMB to add peer support specialists as an occupation in the Standard Occupational Classification by January 1, 2026. It also directs HHS (with the Attorney General) to study and report within one year on criminal background check requirements that affect certification and practice as peer support specialists and to recommend ways to reduce barriers to certification. Together the measures aim to professionalize and support the peer support workforce, provide technical assistance and best practices to states and tribes, improve career pathways and retention, and clarify federal recognition of the occupation without directly changing Medicaid benefits or creating new entitlement spending in the text provided.