Today, we are deeply concerned by renewed threats to Medicaid, a vital lifeline for millions of Americans living with mental illness.

Medicaid is the largest payer of mental health services in the United States. It ensures that people—especially those in crisis, those living in poverty, and those with chronic mental health conditions—can access the care they need to survive. Stripping or restricting Medicaid access isn’t just a policy decision. It’s a direct attack on the most vulnerable among us.

We know this personally.

Amy Bleuel, our founder, died while waiting for a mental health appointment. She had the courage to speak her pain, but the system failed to answer. That failure is not unique — it echoes in every email we receive, every story shared, and every suicide that could have been prevented with timely, affordable care.

Medicaid Saves Lives — and Still Isn’t Enough

Even with Medicaid, people often face long waitlists, limited provider options, and care that doesn’t fully meet their needs. But taking it away? That’s not reform — that’s abandonment.

Let’s be clear:

• 1 in 5 U.S. adults lives with a mental illness.

• Over 10 million people rely on Medicaid for behavioral health care.

• Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people aged 10–34.

Cutting Medicaid puts every one of those lives at greater risk.

We Stand With Every Life That’s Been Deemed “Too Expensive”

We stand with:

• The young adult navigating depression while working two jobs.

• The single parent struggling with PTSD from abuse.

• The LGBTQ+ teen denied affirming care in their hometown.

• The person in recovery trying to hold on without therapy.

We see you. And we will fight for you.

What We’re Calling For

1. Protect and expand Medicaid, not just for physical health but for comprehensive, trauma-informed mental health services.

2. Fund peer support programs and community-based models that supplement traditional care.

3. Create policy rooted in lived experience, centering the voices of those who’ve been harmed by the gaps in care.

Our Promise

Project Semicolon will continue to advocate, build tools, and create spaces where people can find the help they need — with or without the system’s support. But we cannot remain silent as lawmakers debate the value of our lives.

Mental illness doesn’t discriminate. But access to care still does.

To every person who feels forgotten by the system: we haven’t forgotten you.

Your story isn’t over.

— The Project Semicolon Team