Medicaid is a lifeline for more than 72 million Americans, including people with mental health and substance use conditions, pregnant women, children, people with disabilities, working families and veterans.

It is also the largest funder of mental health and substance use care in the United States, covering more than 40 percent of non-elderly adults with mental health and substance use disorders.

As executive director of NAMI Greater Wheeling, soon to encompass all of West Virginia, part of the National Alliance on Mental Illness — the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization — I see firsthand how vital Medicaid is for individuals and families in West Virginia.

In our state, Medicaid funds one in every four dollars spent on mental health and substance use treatment and covers more than a quarter of adults with serious mental illness.

Without Medicaid, many people in our community would be forced to delay or forgo critical mental health care, leading to devastating consequences.

That’s why I’m deeply concerned that Congress is considering significant funding cuts to Medicaid, including proposals that would introduce block grants, per capita caps, and work-reporting requirements. These changes would force states like West Virginia to limit eligibility, reduce benefits and create unnecessary barriers for individuals who rely on Medicaid for life-saving mental health and substance use disorder treatment.

The cost of these cuts would be severe:

• Reduced Medicaid funding would disproportionately harm those with serious mental illness, leading to increased suicide rates, overdoses and hospitalizations.

• States that have cut Medicaid benefits in the past have experienced spikes in emergency room visits and unnecessary hospitalizations due to delayed mental health care.

• 90 percent of Medicaid recipients are already working, in school or unable to work, due to medical conditions — proposals requiring work reporting are burdensome and unnecessary.

• Cutting Medicaid wouldn’t save money — it would shift costs elsewhere, increasing the financial burden on hospitals, law enforcement and local governments, while worsening the mental health crisis in our state.

At NAMI, we work every day to support individuals living with mental illness and their families. Our advocacy efforts are part of a larger statewide push by NAMI West Virginia to expand mental health resources, raise awareness and strengthen partnerships with other organizations. We are working aggressively to ensure that rural and underserved communities have access to mental health care and substance use disorder treatment.

As part of these efforts, our team has met with the legislative staffs of both Senators Capito and Justice to emphasize the importance of protecting Medicaid funding. These discussions have been critical as we work to close the gap in mental health services and provide essential resources to those in need. We are encouraged by these conversations but remain steadfast in urging leaders, at all levels, to take action.

That’s why we urge our federal and state representatives to reject any cuts to Medicaid and instead champion policies that expand mental health services and increase collaboration between federal and state Medicaid programs. Protecting Medicaid means protecting lives.

We need leaders who will fight for mental health care access, not put it at risk. West Virginia is already facing a mental health crisis — we should be strengthening our response, not weakening it. Medicaid is essential for people with mental illness, and we must keep it fully funded to ensure access to treatment and care.

To learn more about how you can help protect Medicaid, visit nami.org/Medicaid.

(Gomez is the executive director of NAMI Greater Wheeling. The National Alliance on Mental Illness is the largest grassroots mental health organization in the United States.)