The Colorado Behavioral Health Task Force, which the state’s Department of Human Services created in early 2019, will now address the effects of COVID-19 on the behavioral health system through a special committee.

“This emergency has been especially challenging for the one million Coloradans who already struggle with behavioral health conditions,” said Michelle Barnes, executive director of the department. “This committee will help us understand how COVID-19 has affected Coloradans’ ability to access services and what we can do to prepare our system for any future crises. We know things like job loss, reduced hours, social isolation, closures of schools and businesses, and access to basic needs like food and housing have had a great impact on mental health and substance use.”  

Colorado Crisis Services, which operates a mental health and substance abuse hotline (1-844-493-TALK), has reported that approximately 60% of calls now relate to the pandemic. The committee will publish a report about the immediate and long-term impacts of COVID-19 on behavioral healthcare in the state.

A Kaiser Family Foundation survey conducted in the last week of March found that 45% of respondents said the coronavirus has had a negative effect on their mental health. Two-thirds of healthcare workers worry about their own health, and roughly half of all workers were worried about their employment situation.