Mental health bill gets OK

“This is a major step forward in addressing our nation’s antiquated and ineffective approach to treating mental health problems,” Ms. Stefanik said in a news release. “Sadly, millions of Americans suffer from severe psychiatric disorders that are going untreated.”

The bill was first introduced in 2013 following the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn. Its current version was presented to the House in June 2015, shortly after the Government Accountability Office published a study critical of numerous federal mental health programs.

Despite spending more than $130 billion on mental health each year, the study found, 112 federal programs were not effectively connecting individuals with care and a nationwide shortage of nearly 100,000 psychiatric beds existed.

Using a multi-pronged approach, the bill calls on the federal government to refocus programs and resources, reform grants and remove federal barriers to care.

If signed into law, it would create the position of “Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders” within the Department of Health and Human Services and establish a National Mental Health Policy Laboratory to drive innovative models of care and evidence-based grant programs.

It also calls for additional mental health beds, improved early intervention and prevention programs and for the inclusion of parents and caregivers in the medical process.

Members of the House are now calling for the immediate passage of a similar bill in the Senate. Legislative recess begins July 18.

For more on this bill, visit http://wdt.me/HR-2646.