Spokane, Washington, Mayor Nadine Woodward plans to lead the formation of a regional task force on mental health in 2022. The task force would aim to identify gaps and weaknesses in mental health care and build a regional consensus on what Spokane needs — and approach state leaders for funding to help fill those voids, The Spokesman‐Review reported Nov. 30. Woodward imagines that this task force would include elected leaders from across Spokane County, but also those with experience working in behavioral and mental health. Demand for mental health services has spiked during the pandemic, and locally it has laid bare the gaps and existing components in need of further support. In its most recent forecast of behavioral health impacts related to the pandemic last month, the Department of Health described a confluence of factors that could strain people's mental health heading into the winter, including the uncertainty around new COVID‐19 variants and returning to work in person. Leaders and advocates in behavioral health organizations welcomed Woodward's calls for collaboration. Chauntelle Lieske, who stepped into the role of executive director at the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Spokane this summer, stated, “This is such a huge system and touches so many different areas, that it seems like a task force would be a good idea to get people at the table.”