The Health and Medicine Division of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will convene a Forum on Mental and Substance Use Disorders to provide a structured environment and neutral venue to discuss data, policies, practices, and systems that affect the diagnosis and provision of care for mental and substance use disorders, including for substance-related and addictive conditions. Its activities, which will focus on adults (including older adults), will facilitate sustained attention to these conditions throughout the Academies. Forum participants will engage in dialogue on a range of issues, including:

• innovation to facilitate access to short- and long-term services for mental health and substance use disorders in various care settings;

• coordination and integration of these services in primary and specialty health care delivery systems;

• regulatory challenges related to maintaining the confidentiality of behavioral health information and treatment records;

• standardization of diagnosis and treatment;

• financing evidence-based care in different settings;

• policy and systems changes to decriminalize people with mental health and substance use disorders;

• engagement of patients and families;

• the use of technology, such as telemedicine and mobile applications, to deliver and support care;

• standardization of data collection to enable data matching, aggregation, and sharing;

• the role of recovery, wellness, and peer counseling;

• benchmarks to assess and improve quality of care;

• professional education and training; and

• strategies, technologies, and infrastructure for strengthening the evidence base, care practices, and cultural relevance of diagnosis and interventions.

Forum activities will emphasize potential opportunities for action and may include expert meetings, public workshops, and webinars; summary publications; and targeted communications and community engagement.

Forum members and participants will include federal, state, and local government officials; representatives of consumer and family advocacy groups; service providers; payers; policy analysts; researchers; educators; and representatives of relevant professional associations and foundations