Legislative priorities could focus on mental health diversion, Oklahoma lawmaker says

OKLAHOMA CITY — Oklahoma needs to focus on policies that divert people seeking mental and behavioral healthcare from emergency rooms and jails, a state lawmaker said Tuesday. 

State Rep. Mark Lawson, R-Sapulpa, who chairs a special legislative committee on mental health funding, said that Oklahoma’s jails have become de facto mental health clinics even though the people working in those facilities are not trained clinicians. 

Diverting people to the proper treatment venues is important as Oklahoma remains under the terms of a consent decree, Lawson told the crowd of about 100 people who were attending an event in Oklahoma City focused on the state of mental health in Oklahoma. The event was hosted by the Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, an Oklahoma City-based nonprofit focused on policy changes for mental illness and addiction in the state. 

The court-ordered decree requires the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services to reduce the wait time for competency restoration services for jailed people with severe mental illness. 

“In the Legislature, it continues to be a priority for us to have a very healthy and robust mental health service array available to Oklahomans who need it,” Lawson said.

Lawmakers will also have many unknowns to deal with in the upcoming session, Lawson said. Gov.-elect Mike Mazzei will appoint a new leader for the Mental Health Department when he takes office in January, and there could be changing priorities in Congress after the midterm elections, he said. 

Zack Stoycoff, president and CEO of Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, said programs that divert away from emergency rooms and jails are critical as the cost of treating people in these places is much higher than the cost of investing in proper treatment would be. 

In 2025, there were about 45,000 mental health-related emergency room visits in Oklahoma which carries a cost of about $266 million, he said. A large share of these visits were related to suicide, which Stoycoff said made up about a quarter of this cost. 

“The emergency room is the most expensive possible place to treat a mental health crisis,” Stoycoff said. “And until we have a healthcare or mental healthcare system that can adequately get upstream of the ER, we will continue to feel the burden of rising healthcare costs at the state Capitol for employers, for health plans, for providers, and everyday Oklahomans.” 

The cost of admission to an emergency room for behavioral and mental health-related visits is also rising, he said. 

In 2025, the average cost for a behavioral health-related admission was about $4,960. It cost an average of $6,450 for substance use disorder, and about $7,050 for suicidality, Stoycoff said. 

Strategic investment in mental health can produce long-term savings across public spending and economic activity, Stoycoff said. 

“We will all be waiting to see what changes happen federally after the recent elections, as they could dramatically alter the outlook for healthcare in 2027 and beyond,” he said. “But no matter what happens, we believe the path forward must recognize mental health not just as another line item, but as a solution.”