Palm Springs Unified Expands Mental Health Services Through New Initiative

Palm Springs Unified School District is taking a significant step toward improving student mental health with a new statewide initiative aimed at expanding access to behavioral health services.

Through the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, the district can use families' insurance plans to receive reimbursement for mental health services while continuing to provide them at no cost to parents. This additional funding will help maintain and grow resources like therapy, wellness centers, psychoeducation, and mental health screenings.

Director of Health Services, Laura Dyson, emphasized that the initiative will allow the district to expand its existing services to better support students.

"We want to reassure parents that we'll never send a bill, we're not going to access deductibles, and this won’t affect your insurance status," Dyson explained.

With mental health concerns among students rising post-pandemic, the district is working to remove barriers to support. Dr. Tony Signore, PSUSD Superintendent, reassured families that all information provided will remain strictly confidential under FERPA and HIPAA.

“This has nothing to do with immigration,” Signore stated, addressing concerns from families. “Your information will only be used for the purposes of this initiative.”

PSUSD parents who haven’t yet submitted their insurance information can do so by visiting NBCPalmSprings.com under the Newsroom tab.

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