Today, discussions of mental health challenges for families, providers, businesses, law enforcement and state agencies reverberate in every news outlet, on social media and in our everyday conversations. It’s a critical challenge for policymakers—from county courthouses to the White House. And it’s a dominant topic at Iowa’s statehouse—and in state governments across America.

Despite intense public interest, it’s difficult to get meaningful, relevant and trusted mental health information. Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of information. But people writing the laws might as well be speaking a different language than those trying to work under them.