Topics Related to Secretary's Office

PRESS RELEASE - Suicide is a statewide and national public health crisis impacting people of all ages across all socioeconomic, racial and ethnic backgrounds. Suicide awareness is key to saving lives, and with September recognized as Suicide Prevention Awareness Month, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services remembers those affected by suicide and is raising awareness of treatments and resources available to everyone in the community.

MEDIA ADVISORY - North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody H. Kinsley — alongside NC State Senators Jim Burgin and Norman Sanderson — will host a community discussion in Elizabeth City, N.C, on Sept. 14, at 6 p.m. on improving mental health care in North Carolina. NCDHHS is committed to transforming behavioral health and resilience, as more than three million people in North Carolina have mental health or substance use disorders.

PRESS RELEASE - Medicaid expansion will no longer launch Oct. 1 as the North Carolina General Assembly failed to take needed action to meet that date. The NC Department of Health and Human Services has been working diligently, every day, to be ready for Oct. 1. And now, with five days left and clarity that no votes will be taken, the department is confident that legislators will not sign a budget this month, nor pass separate legislation giving the final authorization to provide health coverage to more than 600,000 North Carolinians. A new launch date will be announced following the needed legislative action, but it will not be Oct. 1.

MEDIA ADVISORY - The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody H. Kinsley will hold a media availability on Monday, Aug. 28, to provide an important update about Medicaid Expansion. The Secretary will answer questions following a brief statement about the timeline for implementation.

MEDIA ADVISORY - North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody H. Kinsley — alongside NC State Senator Jim Burgin, NC State Representative Howard Penny and Campbell University leadership — will host a community discussion in Lillington, N.C, on Aug. 24, at 6 p.m. on improving the mental health of college students across North Carolina.

MEDIA ADVISORY - The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services will join the North Carolina Council on Developmental Disabilities for a statewide virtual and in-person town hall on Aug. 10 at 6 p.m.

MEDIA ADVISORY - The American Red Cross begins accepting donations Monday, Aug. 7, from newly eligible individuals, many in the LGBTQ+ community, under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration expanded eligibility recommendations. North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kody H. Kinsley will be donating blood under these rules in Raleigh on Monday. State Health Director and NCDHHS Chief Medical Officer Elizabeth Cuervo Tilson, M.D., will also be donating blood.

Building on the success of a program in Mecklenburg County, the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services today announced the development of pilot community-based programs to restore the capacity of people who the courts determine are Incapable to Proceed (ITP) to trial.

Recognizing the role everyone plays in helping North Carolina’s children reach their untapped potential, Governor Roy Cooper declared April as Child Abuse Prevention Month.

The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services published its Olmstead Plan, designed to assist people with disabilities who receive or are eligible for publicly-funded services to reside in and experience the full benefit of being part of day-to-day life in communities alongside those without disabilities. Developed with stakeholders from across the state, the plan’s goal is to divert people from entering institutions and to support those wishing to leave.