Findings

Congress finds the following: (1) The AANHPI community is among the fastest growing population groups in the United States. It is a diverse population representing more than 70 distinct ethnicities, and speaking more than 100 languages and dialects. (2) There is a growing mental health crisis in the United States, particularly for AANHPI individuals. AANHPI individuals with mental health challenges have the lowest rates of mental health service utilization compared to other racial or ethnic populations. In 2023, only 35 percent of Asian adults with a mental health challenge received treatment in the past year. Although suicide is the eleventh leading cause of death, it is the leading cause of death for AANHPI youth. From 2018 to 2023, AANHPI youth between the ages of 10 to 24 years were the only racial or ethnic population in this age category where suicide was the leading cause of death. (3) Such mental health disparities within the AANHPI community may be attributed to systemic barriers to accessing mental health services, including stigma attached to mental health, limited availability of and access to culturally and linguistically appropriate services, and insufficient research. (4) Insufficient research on AANHPI communities often leads to an inaccurate representation of their experiences and needs. It is imperative to disaggregate AANHPI population data to better understand the range of mental health issues for each subpopulation so that specific culturally and linguistically appropriate solutions can be developed. (5) Critical investments are necessary to reduce stigma and improve mental health within AANHPI communities, including increasing culturally and linguistically appropriate outreach education and mental health services, improving representation of AANHPI individuals among the behavioral health workforce, and strengthening disaggregated data collection in research.