To address disparities in behavioral health care, the National Network to Eliminate Disparities (NNED) in Behavioral Health was formed with support from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration in partnership with the National Alliance of Multi-ethnic Behavioral Health Associations (NAMBHA).

The NNED will support information sharing, training and technical assistance among organizations and communities dedicated to the behavioral health and well-being of diverse communities.  The NNED will identify and link "pockets of excellence" in reducing disparities and promoting behavioral health equity.  It will reduce the tendency to “reinvent the wheel.”  The NNED will work with network members to:

• Coordinate the sharing of community-based knowledge and training of cultural, indigenous, and community-based best practices
  
• Foster new collaborative partnerships to grow and spread "pockets of excellence;"
• Leverage resources through partnering and collaborative initiatives;
  
• Research and design new practices and adapt existing practices; and
  
• Collectively advance political will

NNED Vision: Striving for behavioral health equity for all individuals, families, and communities.

NNED Mission: To build a national network of diverse racial, ethnic, cultural and sexual minority communities and organizations to promote policies, practices, standards and research to eliminate behavioral health disparities.

Historically, there have been issues that have made it difficult for diverse communities to work collectively to reduce the inequities of resources in their respective communities. The NNED will try to bridge these differences through a set of guiding values that include a commitment to:

• excellence in behavioral health
• a strong community voice
• collective dialogue
• inclusion, respect and consensus
• trust and reciprocity
• a strengths-based approach to policy, practice and research
• a holistic view of health and wellness across the lifespan
• understanding system intersections
• understanding of good business principles
• flexibility