Police officers' MH is focus of bill moving through Maryland legislature

Maryland police officers who are dealing with stressors — such as family issues, substance abuse or mass protests — will have access to confidential mental health aid under a bill progressing in the state legislature, Capital News Service reported Jan. 25. The Police Officers Mental Health Employee Assistance Program, sponsored by Delegate Benjamin Brooks, D‐Baltimore County, and Sen. Mary Washington, D‐Baltimore, would require each law enforcement agency to provide its officers with access to an employee assistance or mental health program at a minimal cost to the officer. These employee assistance programs include confidential counseling services, crisis counseling, stress management counseling and peer support services for police officers. “One in four police officers have thought about committing suicide at one point in their career,” Brooks told Capital News Service. An important component of these em‐ployee assistance programs focuses on protecting police officers' mental health during periods of public demonstration and unrest. Under this bill, police officers would receive the help they need and avoid potential repercussions from the department or fellow officers.