Suicide prevention: mental health provider educational loan repayment.

Existing law authorizes a licensed mental health service provider, as defined, including a marriage and family therapist, associate marriage and family therapist, licensed clinical social worker, and associate clinical social worker, who provides direct patient care in a publicly funded facility or a mental health professional shortage area, as defined, to apply for grants under the Licensed Mental Health Service Provider Education Program to reimburse the provider's educational loans related to a career as a licensed mental health service provider. Existing law establishes the Mental Health Practitioner Education Fund and provides that moneys in that fund are available, upon appropriation by the Legislature, for purposes of the Licensed Mental Health Service Provider Education Program. This bill would create an account within the Mental Health Practitioner Education Fund and, subject to an appropriation by the Legislature, require the use of moneys in that account to fund grants to repay educational loans for specified mental health practitioners who commit to providing direct patient care for at least 24 months in a facility that provides mental health services to individuals who have been referred to that facility by a suicide prevention hotline.