Valley Cities

Presidential Proclamation — National Mental Health Awareness Month, 2013

Erin Lee — Wed, 01 May 2013 21:33:30 +0000

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2013/04/30/presidential-proclamation-national-mental-health-awareness-month-2013

“Changing Views, Changing Lives: What’s Next in Mental Health”

Erin Lee — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 23:15:02 +0000

Valley Cities’ first Lunch & Learn on community mental health and what you can do to help reduce the stigma of mental illness.

Friday, May 17th, 2013
11:30 am to 1 pm

Renton Community Center
Renton, WA

Hear personal stories about mental health and recovery.
Learn what anyone can do to help someone in need of assistance.
Find out how you can become certified in Mental Health First Aid.

$10 Suggested Donation

To RSVP, email

For sponsorship information, contact Erin at

Report released on expansion of Mental Health & Substance Use Disorder benefits

Erin Lee — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 17:07:34 +0000

The Dept. of Health & Human Services has released a report on how the Affordable Care Act will expand Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder benefits and parity protections for 62 million Americans.

Link to full report:

http://aspe.hhs.gov/health/reports/2013/mental/rb_mental.pdf

Valley Cities Awarded Grant for Integrated Health Care Project

Erin Lee — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 21:25:39 +0000

Valley Cities partners with HealthPoint and QoLmeds in providing combined health services

Valley Cities was awarded $292,711 from the Washington State Attorney General’s Office’s Consumer Protection Division providing funding for implementation of the Primary Care Integration project. This project moves mental health services forward by combining medical care and mental health services focusing on individuals with serious mental illness who also have chronic health conditions and face barriers in receiving consistent medical care services.

Partnering with Valley Cities are HealthPoint and QoLmeds. HealthPoint provides medical and dental care, as well as complementary and alternative medical services, at 17 clinics in 11 King County locations. QoLmeds places full-service pharmacies inside of Community Mental Health Centers and Federally Qualified Health Centers across the country.

Valley Cities’ CEO, Ken Taylor, looks forward to integrated health care services being available to the community. “In early 2012, we began talking with HealthPoint about the goal of providing comprehensive medical and behavioral health care in south King County. This exciting system change will bring better, more holistic health care to our community members needing mental and medical health care. We have worked with primary health care providers for many years and believe deeply in the integration of medical and mental health care.”

To find out more about primary care integration, please contact Director of Program Development, Dan McDougall-Treacy at 253.205.0618 or e-mail at

Sign the petition to increase Americans’ access to Mental Health Services

Erin Lee — Wed, 30 Jan 2013 23:50:09 +0000

Valley Cities encourages everyone in our community to sign the petition, urging the President to consider 4 proposals that will increase Americans’ access to mental health & addictions services by expanding public education about mental illness and increasing the health system’s capacity:
1. Include public education on mental/addiction disorders in the President’s 2014 budget request.
2. Support the Mental Health First Aid Higher Education Act.
3. Incorporate a more robust definition of community mental health centers into a revised Medicare Conditions of Participation.
4. Support the Excellence in Mental Health Act.

Go to http://tinyurl.com/a6mh956 to sign the petition today!