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Natalie Lawson

is a Senior State Policy Analyst at the Georgetown University McCourt School of Public Policy’s Center for Children and Families.

Natalie Lawson is a Senior State Policy Analyst with the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families. She began her career as a community mental health social worker in Chicago for low-income adults with severe mental illnesses and substance use disorders. Natalie went on to hold various positions relating to health and behavioral health, including research and analysis at policy advocacy non-profits and working on federal and state technical assistance contracts. Prior to this role, she was a Graduate Research Associate on the Healthy Michigan Project examining the impact of Michigan's Medicaid expansion in the state. Natalie holds an MHSA from the University of Michigan School of Public Health and a BS in Psychology from Loyola University Chicago.

Latest From Natalie

Funding for Community Health Workers Authorized in Consolidated Appropriations Act – How could this help children and families? 

We’ve written about several of the exciting health provisions in the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023 that was signed into law in December here on Say Ahhh!: to recap, Joan Alker wrote about the permanent mandatory 12-month continuous eligibility requirement and other important provisions, Tricia Brooks detailed the new guardrails and transparency requirements as states […]

Federal Focus on Behavioral Health Crisis Care 

You may be thinking that we’ve been writing a lot about behavioral health on Say Ahhh! lately. Well, you’re right – and there’s more! For starters, last week, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) released new National Guidelines for Child and Youth Behavioral Health Crisis Care, complementing other recent resources such as […]

Medicaid and the 988 Mental Health Crisis Services Lifeline: State Approaches

Last month, the new three-digit mental health crisis and suicide prevention number – 988 – went live for call, text, and chat. Established by the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020, this easy to remember number is meant to support people experiencing suicidal ideation, mental health and substance use crises, or any kind of […]