Dr. Perry Hoffman founded the National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder (NEABPD) alongside individuals with lived experience, family members, clinical and research professionals. Advocacy was embedded in the organization’s mission, with an early focus on reducing stigma, increasing access to evidence-based care, and promoting family inclusion.

NEABPD secured National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) funding to host national conferences bringing together consumers, families, clinicians, and researchers. These conferences promoted a unified, evidence-based approach to BPD and centered lived experience in national dialogue.

NEABPD organized a bipartisan congressional briefing on Borderline Personality Disorder on Capitol Hill. The event educated Members of Congress and staff about the seriousness and treatability of BPD and featured clinical experts, federal leaders, and lived-experience testimony.

NEABPD led national advocacy efforts that resulted in the recognition of May as Borderline Personality Disorder Awareness Month. This created an annual platform for education, stigma reduction, and public engagement.

United States House of Representatives:
H.Res.1005 – Supporting the goals and ideals of Borderline Personality Disorder Awareness Month

At the request of the US House Committee on Appropriations, SAMHSA developed a diagnosis-specific Report to Congress on borderline personality disorder. NEABPD was formally engaged to provide expert input and to ensure the inclusion of family perspectives, early intervention, and evidence-based treatment. The report highlighted BPD as a serious public health issue characterized by elevated suicide risk, significant stigma, and substantial evidence for recovery when appropriate supports were available. It explicitly recognized the importance of family psychoeducation, early intervention, and trauma-informed, evidence-based care. This milestone marked one of the first times BPD received sustained, diagnosis-specific attention in a federal policy document, representing a significant advancement in national recognition, legitimacy, and systems-level advocacy for individuals and families affected by BPD.

SAMHSA convened a Federal Partners Meeting to coordinate federal action following the Report to Congress. Co-sponsored by NEABPD and NAMI, the meeting centered on lived experience and reinforced priorities, including early identification, family psychoeducation, and suicide prevention.

Article: Federal Partners Meeting on BPD >

NEABPD helped launch the Global Alliance for the Prevention and Early Intervention of BPD. GAP’s advanced international advocacy focused on prevention, early identification, and early intervention.

NEABPD participated in federal advocacy urging recognition of BPD as a serious mental illness. In 2017, leadership joined national advocates in submitting a letter to HHS related to the 21st Century Cures Act.

Dr. Perry Hoffman joined advocates from Emotions Matter in a meeting with NIMH leadership. The group presented a petition, organized by Emotions Matter and personal stories advocating for increased BPD research funding.

Link to resources #8

NEABPD partnered with Behavioral Tech to host a congressional briefing on youth suicide and self-injury. The event highlighted the need for early intervention, evidence-based treatment, and family-inclusive care.

Link to resources #9 and Congressional briefing videos

Picture and caption – resource #10

NEABPD hosted its fourth congressional briefing focused on engaging and supporting families in suicide prevention. Policymakers, clinicians, and family advocates addressed suicide risk related to BPD and emotion dysregulation.

Link to Resource #11 and videos

With Emotions Matter leading the effort and NEABPD working alongside them, the Illinois House Mental Health and Addiction Committee unanimously endorsed House Joint Resolution IL-HJR0030, recognizing May as BPD Awareness Month.

Link to Resource #12

California enacted AB 1412, removing stigmatizing language around BPD and allowing those with BPD to participate in the state’s Pretrial Diversion Program. The legislation promoted access to treatment rather than incarceration.

Link to Resource #13

Illinois Senate Resolution SR 811 formally established May as Borderline Personality Disorder Awareness Month. The milestone was achieved through collaboration with Emotions Matter and supported by a public press release from Senator Fine.

Link to resources #14

In coordination with Pepperdine University, the National Education Alliance for Borderline Personality Disorder (NEABPD) advanced national BPD advocacy by framing access to therapy (DBT) as a systemic “wicked problem” requiring coordinated, multi-stakeholder solutions. Through focus groups with individuals with lived experience, clinicians, researchers, and organizations, NEABPD identified shared barriers to care—including inadequate insurance reimbursement, workforce shortages, diagnostic stigma, and system navigation challenges—despite strong evidence that comprehensive DBT reduces suicidality, self-harm, and hospitalizations. The analysis called for a unified advocacy strategy integrating policy reform, dedicated insurance billing codes, workforce expansion, and anti-stigma efforts, marking a shift toward systems-level change to ensure equitable, sustainable access to evidence-based treatment for people with BPD.

California advanced borderline personality disorder (BPD) advocacy with the passage of Assembly Bill 3077 (AB 3077), which aimed to remove BPD as an explicit exclusion when courts considered mental illness as a mitigating factor in criminal sentencing—a critical effort to reduce stigma and align BPD with other serious mental illnesses. Although the bill passed the Legislature, it was not signed by Governor Gavin Newsom. That same year, voters approved Proposition 1, a behavioral health bond measure funding treatment infrastructure and supportive housing for individuals with serious mental health conditions, indirectly benefiting those with BPD. Together, these developments reflected growing recognition of BPD as a serious, treatable mental illness, even as key advocacy goals remained unmet.

Link to Resource #15

NEABPD participated in The Kennedy Forum’s 2024 Alignment for Progress Conference as a Commitment Maker, joining national stakeholders in advancing measurable, systems-level improvements in mental health care. Through this commitment, NEA-BPD aligned its work in education, advocacy, and access to evidence-based treatment with the Forum’s 90-90-90 by 2033 goals—to ensure that 90% of individuals are screened for mental health conditions, 90% of those identified receive evidence-based care, and 90% of those treated achieve improved outcomes.

In 2025, NEABPD applied to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish an HCPCS code for comprehensive Dialectical Behavior Therapy (DBT). The goal was to support Medicaid coverage of DBT as an effective, evidence-based treatment for borderline personality disorder. Although CMS did not move forward with the application at that time, the effort opened essential doors for continued advocacy, dialogue, and strategic partnerships, strengthening ongoing efforts to expand access to comprehensive DBT nationwide.  The application was supported by several stakeholders, including the American Psychological Association, the American Psychiatric Association, and the Kennedy Forum.