# Understanding the Connecting Students with Mental Health Services Act

This bill creates a federal grant program to help schools set up telehealth mental health services for their students. Essentially, the government would give money to schools and local health organizations that partner together to provide mental health counseling and support through video calls and other remote technology. Instead of students having to travel to a separate clinic or office, they could access a counselor or therapist right at school using computers or tablets.

The bill specifically targets schools that struggle the most to provide these services—rural schools where mental health professionals are scarce, schools in poor neighborhoods, and schools in areas officially designated as having a shortage of health professionals. Schools that receive grants can use the money to buy computers and video conferencing equipment, hire staff to run the programs, or upgrade their internet connections to support telehealth. The bill requires schools to protect student privacy when collecting health information through these programs, following existing privacy laws.

The program would start within six months of the bill becoming law, and Congress would authorize $5 million per year from 2026 through 2029 to fund it. By 2027, the Education and Health and Human Services departments would have to report back to Congress on how many students actually used these services and whether the program should be expanded. The bill also includes an important safeguard: schools can't use this money to replace existing mental health funding they already have—it's meant to add new services, not substitute for ones that already exist.