More than a million New Jerseyans are experiencing a mental health condition, and many of them are children.
Each year, nearly 150,000 New Jersey adolescents experience depression, and as many as 61% don’t receive care due to the shortage of behavioral health care professionals. Across just 24 of the state’s 735 mental health organizations, 776 positions among licensed social workers, psychiatrists and substance use counselors remain unfilled.
Too many New Jerseyans are left waiting for help. Fortunately, New Jersey lawmakers have taken a significant step toward closing this gap.
In May, New Jersey passed House Bill A2813 into law, authorizing the state to join the Social Work Licensure Compact. The compact allows qualified licensed social workers to practice in all participating states without being forced to retake exams that they’ve already passed and spent hours studying for in their home state. This move will expand New Jersey’s behavioral health workforce and significantly improve access to much-needed mental health care, especially for children and adolescents.
The youth mental health crisis is running rampant throughout the state. While one in 20 New Jersey adults reports experiencing serious thoughts of suicide each year, that number jumps to one in nine among adolescents. As youth mental health needs are increasing, the support systems meant to help them are under strain. New Jersey’s K-12 public schools have just one psychologist for every 663 students, far below the recommended ratio of one psychologist per every 500 students.
New Jersey children deserve access to care. Many have had traumatic experiences, such as neglect, abuse or witnessing violence. These traumas raise the risk of long-term mental health challenges and substance abuse. New Jersey youth urgently need better access to mental health professionals who can help them address these challenges early on.
Although youth are hit the hardest, the shortage spans the entire population. Forty-two percent of adults across New Jersey live with depression and anxiety, which is higher than the national average. To make matters worse, more than 265,000 live in communities without sufficient access to care. Counties such as Cumberland, Cape May and Sussex are all designated as mental health professional shortage areas, where residents often face long wait times for appointments that further delay treatment and increase the risk of worsening mental health conditions.
Fortunately, the SWLC will help address these gaps and bring much-needed care to underserved areas. By enabling out-of-state social workers to serve New Jersey clients, particularly through telehealth services, this flexibility offers vital relief to the 300,000 adults in New Jersey who forgo treatment due to a lack of available providers, insurance coverage or financial barriers. It’s a change that will benefit every New Jerseyan.
Still, the SWLC is only part of the solution. Addressing these issues requires greater support for social workers. High student loan debt and low pay are already significant barriers that may discourage prospective social workers from entering the field. This not only worsens the shortage but also increases burnout, since social workers will have to take on heavier workloads. Solutions like mentorship, professional development resources, financial incentives, paid internships and flexible work models can help alleviate these pressures and support the social workers who care for the Garden State’s most vulnerable populations. Many hands make light work, but to achieve this, policymakers must build on the compact’s momentum.
Social workers are lifelines that help New Jerseyans manage some of their most challenging mental health battles. By passing the Social Work Licensure Compact, New Jersey has taken a meaningful step toward expanding its behavioral health workforce and improving access to much-needed care. Although the compact is a game changer for New Jersey’s most vulnerable populations, sustained investment in the people who support them is key to combating the statewide mental health crisis. Not just for the social workers, but for every person they serve and every community they strengthen.
