NEW YORK CITY
New York City is partnering with the National Council for Behavioral Health to bring ThriveNYC , a public initiative launched in November 2015 , to communities in the city . Its goal is to make mental health first aid as ubiquitous as regular first aid , such as CPR .
One in every four Americans experiences mental illness . Depression , the most ubiquitous , is the number one cause of suicide in the U . S . at more than 40,000 a year .
The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene , will provide $ 850 million in funding for mental health programs over the next four years . A key investment will be providing mental health first aid training to 250,000 people , beginning with first responders like police officers and firefighters and then expanding to include members of the community . Proponents of the program believe it will allow trained bystanders to help prevent deaths , assess harmful situations , and seek appropriate medical treatment for people in crisis .
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