News: Repealing Health Reform: For Heritage Action, It Would Be A 'Grand Slam'
Repeal of the health reform law is gaining traction among Republican lawmakers who have gathered 170 signatures. Leading the campaign is the Heritage Foundation, arguing that the majority of Americans have rejected health during the debate, and more so since it was signed, and is willing to wait until Republicans can effect a reversal. Kaiser Health News interviewed Michael Needham, CEO of Heritage Action for America.
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News: New York and Calif. big losers
One of the consequences of the Senate's failure to pass an extension of unemployment insurance is the cost to Medicaid in each state. Of the $15 billion at stake, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, California stands to loose $1.9 billion and New York $2.2 billion. Every state will lose something, and the range is $22 million for Wyoming to the high in New York. To see the full table, click here.
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News: Threats to Medicaid in Senate vote
June 16 Update The Senate Finance Committee released details of modifications of a bill (HR 4213) the Senate failed to pass yesterday extending federal benefits to help states pay for Medicaid, to continue Medicare physician reimbursements through 2011, and to extend COBRA for people unemployed during the recession. The details of the changes can be downloaded here: Summary of Modifications and Additions
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News: British campaigns ban mental health derision

News: Passing health reform energizes advocates
Historic, jubilant, transformative were among the adjectives enunciated in the on-going celebrations of Sunday's historic pass of health reform in America. Recalling his mother who battled insurance companies on her deathbed, Pres. Barack Obama said passing this law represents the "core principles that everybody should have security." . .
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News: Catholic nuns, liberal politicians boost health reform prospects

News: Patrick Kennedy explains decision not to seek re-election

Commentary: Whistleblower says Prop 63 not working in Cal.

News: Health reform bills differ in closing gaps
If, as the saying goes, politics makes strange bedfellows, crafting health reform has produced some of the more unlikely. LGBT groups, faith-based groups, insurance companies, and the Black Caucus Health Brain Trust are among the diverse interests agreeing on one thing: It's time to end disparities . . .
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News: Mental health in background of upcoming political campaigns

News: Historic House health reform bill squeeks by

News: Mental health in health reform
Advocacy organizations are getting behind the House bill for health reform (HR 3962) citing benefits to those with a mental illness or addictive disorder. Organizations such as AARP and the American Medical Association, announced . . .
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News: Cal. cuts endanger people with mental illness

News: House packages hate crimes bill with defense spending
The House tucked language for a hate-crime bill (HR 2647) including disabilities into the $680 authorization bill for the Pentagon and Department of Defense spending. . .
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Consider This: Thought parity was a done deal?
. . .Think again
Full Story | Topics: addiction, advocacy, drug use, insurance, mental health, mental illness, parity, politics, reform | Comments (3)

News: Parity protection requires regulations

News: Informative SAMHSA website

News: The loss of Sen. Edward Kennedy
Sadness crosses the nation mourning the death of Sen. Edward M. Kennedy (1932-2009), passionate advocate for education, racial harmony, and for reforming labor and health laws. Kennedy's lifetime commitment. . .
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News: Protesters disrupt town hall meetings

News: Parity sets stage for reform, says Kennedy

Consider This: Stinginess on mental health reform
. . .what about the 84 million?
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News: Mental health care needs reform and repair
"Behavioral health services are often the first place cuts in coverage are made," said Mental Health America's CEO, David Shern. . .
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Track Legislation: Stabenow introduces bill (S1136) to close treatment gap
Michigan's Senator Debbie Stabenow (D) introduced a bill to open the door for seriously mentally ill people, now receiving Medicaid, to get comprehensive care in 10 participating states. The Mental Illness Chronic Care Improvement Act (S 1136) is a demonstration program with the potential to close a treatment gap by linking to primary care. Diabetes and heart disease are among the chronic conditions afflicting people with a mental illness and shortening life and Stabenow's proposal recognizes the existing system has...
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News: Budget debate consumes Calif.
An intense campaign is being pitched in California where voters will decide next week whether to take from children and people with a mental illness to plug a budget hole. The heat is turning high while local politicians appear on YouTube and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger enumerates what will happen if the measures that were hammered out in a political deal should be voted down. Words like desperate, grim, and bleak convey the concern. Some are recommending splitting the ballot,...
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News: Grassley stays on Finance Committee for now
Speculation about what Sen. Charles Grassley would do as a result of what CQ called the "post-Specter shuffle," ended earlier today. The Hill announced a deal had been reached with Grassley, the ranking Republican from Iowa finishing the 111th Congress to work on the Finance Committee as it tackles health reform, while the more conservative Sen. Jeff Sessions jumps seniority to become top Republican on the Judiciary Committee. Grassley has been steadfastly pursuing conflicts-of-interest in medicine, hitting psychiatry and nonprofit...
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News: Cal. voters consider retrenchment
California lawmakers have been called "cowardly" for asking voters to undo decisions they previously made to fund programs for children or for people with a mental illness. They represent two of five items for an unusual May 19 ballot that will help plug a budget deficit. As the election nears, citizen editorials are lambasting Gov. Arnold Schwartzenegger for targeting programs vulnerable people while sparing taxes for owners of yachts and planes. Mental health advocates worry that the governor's aggressive campaigning...
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Consider This: The doctor isn't in
. . .shortages in psychiatry
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Consider This: State budget fixes
. . .some will hurt more than others
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News: Vet groups say "no" to Obama plan
"Betrayal," "dead on arrival," and "unacceptable" are just a few of the objections to Pres. Barack Obama's proposal to shift financing of service injuries from the Veterans' Adminsitration (VA) to private insurers. This proposal, which senior members of congress have widely criticized, includes treatment for service related injuries such as Traumatic Brain Injury, PTSD, anxiety disorders, depression. It also seems incongruent with the testimony of Sec. Erik K. Shinseki at hearings last week about extensive mental health needs and the...
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News: Additions to Obama's health team
Three people are likely to complete the top tier of President Obama's health team. Rumors have been circulating for several weeks, and with it all but confirmed officially the media is reporting Dr. Margaret Hamburg will receive the nod for commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), an agency that has been plagued with problems. Dr. Joshua Sharfstein is likely to be named as deputy commissioner. Both have experience as health commissioners in large cities (Hamburg formerly in New...
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News: Kansas Sebelius for HHS
Gov. Kathleen Sebelius is the president's choice for secretary of Health and Human Services. As governor of Kansas and a Washington outsider, she meets a stiff challenge to steer health reform in agencies such as the FDA, or the National Institutes of Health, both of which await nominations. Sebelius is known for her bi-partisan work as a Democrat in a Republican state, for her strong positions on universal health insurance, including an early spokesperson for children, and for taking...
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News: Obama budget blueprint
As he promised on the campaign trail, again on Tuesday night with a joint appearance before Congress, Pres. Obama's budget contains a blueprint for health reform. Anticipated savings will come from trimming excessive payments for programs such as Medicare Advantage and negotiating with drug companies for Medicaid, as well as providing coverage for the 60 million Americans who go without insurance during any 12-month period. Obama's proposal promises to "fundamentally reform our health care system." And he highlighted prevention for...
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News: Schwarzenegger signs budget - - mental health on ballot
Will California voters oppose kids' programs and/or mental health services? That's the way the budget crisis has shaped up with two propositions. As the L.A. Times writes, voters will decide whether "to move $226 million from mental health programs and $608 million from programs aimed at children younger than 5 years old." A special election will be held in May now that the governor signed the intensely controversial budget agreement. Each of the questions was answered by voters in previous...
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News: Calif. budget crisis
Proposals to close a $41 billion gap in the Calif. budget include revisiting Prop 63. Prop 63, known as the millionaires' tax because it is levied on those earning millions, creates new mental health programs and services. It is one of five that would appear on a ballot for a special election in May. Voters would be asked to divert $460 million into existing programs for two years. All this depends on lawmakers passing a budget and as of last...
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News: Mental health proposals trapped in stimulus gridlock
Debate over the stimulus package includes proposals to cut recovery oriented programs important to people with a disability including those with a mental illness. This includes $5.185 billion for prevention and wellness (including $1 billion for diabetes screening and detection); elimination of the $1.5 billion for community health centers. Talking Points Memo posted the bi-partisan proposal offered by Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Ben Nelson (D-Neb) which enumerates the compromise plan....
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Consider This: Rehearsal for health reform
. . .the stimulus package
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Track Legislation: Universal Health Insurance
Rep. John Conyers (D-Mich) introduced again a bill for single-payer, universal health insurance for comprehensive care. The bill specifies easy registration, a list of comprehensive services, and details about how service providers can participate and will be paid. HR 676 explicitly addresses mental health: (a) In General- The Program shall provide coverage for all medically necessary mental health care on the same basis as the coverage for other conditions. Licensed mental health clinicians shall be paid in the same manner...
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News: Daschle nomination now controversial
The Senate Finance Committee will meet later today to discuss the nomination of Tom Daschle as Secretary of Health and Human Services after disclosures about failure to pay taxes and his consulting relationships, including those with insurance companies such as UnitedHealth Group. UnitedHealth is carrier for Medicare Advantage, and Daschle said he will recuse himself from decisions affecting companies he represented. Expectations are that he will be confirmed for the cabinet position of Health and Human Services, but after a...
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News: Stumbling toward children's health insurance
The 111th Congress was expected to quickly pass SCHIP once Barack Obama was in office. The House did (289-139), but the Senate has been stalling -- a vote is expected this week, perhaps today -- but party lines are drawn and the debate has become acrimonious. Today CQ reports that two amendments were vetoed that would require cost-sharing and limit enrollment of legal immigrants. Shedding light on the enormity of this problem, the Kaiser Family Foundation released its 2009 report...
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Consider This: Highway to wellness
. . .includes mental health
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News: Good economy requires health reform
Half of all bankruptcies are tied to health costs President-elect Barack Obama said in a Chicago news conference today. This makes health reform essential, and in the words of the next president, Some may ask how, at this moment of economic challenge, we can afford to invest in reforming our health care system. Well, I ask a different question -- I ask how we can afford not to....If we want to overcome our economic challenges, we must also finally address...
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Consider This: Mental health reform needs input
. . .tell your story to Obama-Biden
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News: Congress moves to reform health
Sen. Max Baucus Congress is wasting no time in setting its health reform agenda or letting letting President-Elect Obama know its priorities. In the Senate, Montana's Max Baucus, Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, is spearheading a substantial project, including a comprehensive report calling for widespread reform of health care: "The link between health care costs and the economy is undeniable. Reforming the health care system is essential to restoring America's overall economy and the financial security of our working...
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News: Ohio voters continue services
In addition to supporting Barack Obama on Tuesday, voters in several Ohio counties approved continuing mental health services. In Stark County a tax levy to fund the newly combined services for mental health and substance abuse was narrowly endorsed. The Stark county Board of Mental Health and Recovery Services funds 20 local agencies serving 22,000 people. Defiance, Fulton, Henry, and Williams counties voters also approved a replacement tax for the four county mental health board....
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Consider This: Local ballot boxes '08
. . . impact mental health
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Interviews: Q & A with Ron Manderscheid: agenda for reform


Dr. Ron Manderscheid, a national leader in policy and research about mental health and substance use care, discusses goal of the Whole Health Campaign with MIWatch.
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News: Mental health in Obama and McCain proposals
With health care reform topping the list of voters' concerns, the Kaiser Family Health Blog created a chart comparing the proposals of Senators Barack Obama and John McCain. Click here to read their positions and learn who "supports housing for seriously mentally ill veterans," who calls for halting the discharge of military for "having a service connected psychological injury." Also included are statements about SCHIP, generic drugs, retired veterans....
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Track Legislation: Parity bill goes back to House
The Senate voted to approve the rescue bill which contained the mental health parity bill. Now the package returns to the House. See Update on parity...
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Track Legislation: Parity bill goes back to House
The Senate voted to approve the rescue bill which contained the mental health parity bill. Now the package returns to the House. See Update on parity...
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News: House passes parity
By a vote of 376 to 47, the House passed insurance parity. Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), one of the sponsors applauded the negotiations leading to the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (H.R. 6983), saying it would end "the cruel and unnecessary stigma associated with mental illness and substance abuse."...
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News: House passes parity
By a vote of 376 to 47, the House passed insurance parity. Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), one of the sponsors applauded the negotiations leading to the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (H.R. 6983), saying it would end "the cruel and unnecessary stigma associated with mental illness and substance abuse."...
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Consider This: Parity in peril
. . .Congress should act
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Consider This: Parity in peril
. . .Congress should act
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News: Rally for parity
A rally drew advocates to call attention to time running out to pass a bill ending insurance discrimination for 113 milion people with mental health and addictive disorders. Here Rep. Betty McCullom (D-Mn) makes the case for what happens to families who must use the emergency room because insurance they lack insurance or veterans are handed a "1-800 number." The proposed legislation makes insurance coverage equal for physician and hospital payments when employers offer policies for physical health. Reps....
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News: Rally planned for parity
With the air going out of this year's Congress, and the fate of parity insurance less certain despite bipartisan and bicameral support, 250 groups are planning a morning rally on Sept. 17.Reps. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN) are scheduled to speak. Sponsors hope the 10-year battle to end insurance discrimination for many will be achieved before the retirement of Sen. Pete Dominici (R-NM) who has been long associated with insurance reform....
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Consider This: Hats off to Dems
. . .for opening the closet door
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News: Wellness caucus in Denver a political first
With a good percentage of the 84 million who suffer from a mental illness or addictive disorders unable to get equal, early and appropriate treatment, or programs designed for recovery, the Whole Health Campaign (WHC) has been striving to make sure political candidates understand these concerns belong to discussions about health care reform. At next week's Democratic Convention in Denver, the WHC, a coalition of 70 organizations, will host a "wellness room," a significant achievement for focusing delegate attention...
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News: Facing deficits, states cut health budgets
Numerous states have announced cuts to mental health programs, many of which are funded by Medicaid. Maine is asking for a $25 enrollment fee, Florida froze rates to nursing homes, and California reduced its reimbursement rate for a 15-minute physician visit to $21.60, reports the Christian Science Monitor. Earlier this week New York cut local assistance by six percent, a blow to funding which has been the "lifeblood for many individuals with psychiatric disabilities in the community," said the Mental...
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News: HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt blogs about health
HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt credits blogging with informing health care debates. The secretary, who blogs himself, participated in the Kaiser Family Foundation's conversation about blogging and health policy. Leavitt's blog provides a window into his own observations along with the administration's talking points about Bush administration policy such as the president's veto of a Medicare Bill....
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News: House holds on Medicare
By an overwhelming vote of 355 to 59 the House passed a bill (H.R. 6331) stopping cuts to Medicare's physician providers and ended the historic discrimination in co-payments for mental health services. Getting this measure through Congress by July 1 has been a priority of the Democrats and has had the broad support of the American Psychiatric Association and the American Medical Association. Sen. Harry Reid promised the Senate will act swiftly. A second House initiative relevant to mental health...
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News: Talks on insurance parity close gaps
Negotiations over key differences in the bills for mental health insurance parity are moving forward now that the House signaled it is willing to drop its insistence on using the American Psychiatric Association's Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) to define psychiatric disorders. The Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (H.R. 1424) had overwhelming support from 274 co-sponsors, and passed the House by a large margin in March. But using the DSM to define psychiatric and substance...
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Track Legislation: S. 558
Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM) introduced the Mental Health Parity Act of 2007 on February 11, 2007: “To provide parity between health insurance coverage of mental health benefits and benefits for medical and surgical services.”
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Track Legislation: H.R. 1424
Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) introduced the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 on March 8, 2007: “To amend section 712 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, section 2705 of the Public Health Service Act, section 9812 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to require equity in the provision of mental health and substance-related disorder benefits under group health plans, to prohibit discrimination on the basis of genetic information with respect to health insurance and employment, and for other purposes.”
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News: Hearings assail drug marketing
How pharmaceutical companies market drugs continues to concern lawmakers on the House Committee on Energy and Commerce. Yesterday Reps. John Dingell and Bart Stupak (both of Mich.) announced additional hearings will follow up the one held in early May when they peppered spokespersons from Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson, and Merck/Schering-Plough about practices they considered deceptive and misleading in the promotion of Lipitor, Procrit and Vytorin. Industry reps believed their ads met standards set by their trade association PhRMA, and...
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News: North Carolina budget for mental health
North Carolina’s Gov. Mike Easley seeks additional money to expand services and psychiatric staff following last year’s failed and heavily criticized reform privatizing services. A tax on cigarettes would generate the $68 million requested in a proposed budget of $21.5 billion. North Carolina ranks 43rd in per capita spending on mental health....
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News: Reactions to Medicaid (HR 5613) moratorium vote
Action of a decisive House of Representatives, led by Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich), to hold off Medicaid cuts, has received considerable local support. President Bush has threatened to veto this bill (it must first move through the Senate), citing a savings of $13 billion over five years. The one-year moratorium is estimated to cost about $1.6 billion. An analysis of the economics, prepared by the Congressional Budget Office, is available in a pdf file. The vote had overwhelming support, and...
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News: Reauthorizing community centers likely
A bill (H.R. 1343) reauthorizing community health care centers through 2012, a major source of medical care for 17 million uninsured people living in areas with few medical services, was approved by a congressional sub-committee reports CQ. The centers date from the 1960s, and the Senate approved a similar bill (S 901) last year. To follow H.R. 1343 through the House of Representatives, click here. To follow S. 901 through the Senate, click here....
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News: Committee passes bill to delay Medicaid cuts
A House committee voted unanimously to delay changes to Medicaid that the Bush administration sought to impose. With broad support on the bill (H.R. 5613) introduced by Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich), ranking member Rep. Joe Barton (R-Tx) thought the House and Senate likely to sustain a presidential veto. Community mental health services are among those that will be delayed one year. The cost for all the Medicaid measures is estimated at $1.65 billion. To follow H.R. 5613 through the House...
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News: Dems revisit SCHIP
The Senate Finance Committee held hearings last week to assess the Bush administration’s decision to limit how states enroll children in the insurance program known as SCHIP. At issue is an August directive from the Secretary of Health and Human Services limiting state authority to set enrollment levels based on family income. A number of states hoped to expand the eligibility criteria but the Bush administration argued that would increase a reliance on government at the expense of private insurance....
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Consider This: Shame on McCain
Would John McCain's policy of excluding pre-existing conditions effect people needing mental health care?
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Track Legislation: H.R. 5613
Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) introduced the Protecting the Medicaid Safety Net Act on March 12, 2008: “To extend certain moratoria and impose additional moratoria on certain Medicaid regulations through April 1, 2009, and for other purposes.”
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News: Bill would halt Medicaid cuts
The House is considering a bill (H.R. 5613) to postpone decisions made by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) that would drastically cut Medicaid services, giving lawmakers time to consider the implications. In hearings held yesterday, Rep. Frank Pallone (D-NJ) outlined the impact for community-based programs serving adults and children with psychiatric needs and called the administration's edicts an attack on “the nation’s safety net” and contrary to congressional intent. The bill has bi-partisan support from 57 co-sponsors....
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News: North Carolina: memogate and upended reform
The North Carolina News Observer learned of a standing order to destroy memos and emails after running a series about the “poorly executed mental health reform plan” in early March, leading to a “memogate” crisis for Gov. Mike Easley. The bad news keeps coming. Spending $400 million to outsource community services to private companies, North Carolina experienced staggering shortages and poor staffing for people needing mental health service. Since 2000, in state run hospitals, at least 82 patients died...
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Consider This: All hail a muscular press
Hail a muscular press
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News: Decriminalizing marijuana
Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.) intends to introduce a federal bill decriminalizing marijuana. While some view this as exciting news, the evidence linking marijuana addiction to the onset of psychosis and as a trigger for schizophrenia, along with the clinical impact of withdrawal of this highly addictive agent, should be part of any conversation. He followed his announcement on the Bill Maher show, with a press release today....
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Consider This: Insurance, business interests favor Senate's parity bill
Insurance, business interests favor Senate's parity bill
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News: House votes for parity
The House of Representatives voted 268 to 148 to require equal insurance coverage for mental illnesses and addictive disorders, a measure which would overturn federal approval of discrimination. It’s almost one year to the date since the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act was introduced by Rep. Patrick Kennedy, here testifying at congressional hearings. President Bush once endorsed parity but now says he opposes it for ideological reasons, according to a report in the New York Times....
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Consider This: Wellstone Equity Act needed
Wellstone Equity Act needed
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News: Paying for parity
House leaders are suggesting two sources of revenue to off-set declines as a result of an insurance parity bill (HR 1424). One would come from banning physicians from making referrals to specialty hospitals in which they have a financial interest. The second would require an increase in drug company discounts to state Medicaid programs. The Congressional Quarterly reported that Republicans were worried, saying the offsets could "cause conservative concern." The House measure, which has 273 co-sponsors, is expected to reach...
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News: Bush health plans costly
Sara Rosenbaum writes in the Feb. 27th issue of the New England Journal of Medicine (free article) that it is an effort to redefine “the role of government in organizing and overseeing the health care marketplace,” not budget, which has driven Bush health proposals. Her case in point is SCHIP, which she calls the "proxy war," but others are in the news. Today, the New York Times says that another Government Accounting Office report (scheduled for release) will again...
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Consider This: Pharma influence grows
Pharms spends more on lobbying while we spend more on drugs.
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News: Michigan lacks will not money
More than three years after a blue-ribbon panel recommended comprehensive and sweeping changes to mental health programs, Michigan has barely followed up on 90 percent of them. An editorial in the Pontiac Oakland Press attributes the failures to lack of political will and rancor rather than fiscal constraints....
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News: One year insurance extension
The House voted a one-year extension of the 1996 mental health insurance law while waiting for a more comprehensive bill to work its way through committees. Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) noted that eleven years ago when the Mental Health Parity Act was passed, it was “only partial parity for mental illness and excluded addiction benefits.” Two bills currently under discussion in Congress attempt to plug some of those holes. In the House, the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity...
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Consider This: Bush budget bad news
Phyllis Vine

With 84 million people suffering from mental illness and substance abuse disorders, Bush budget proposals are entirely insufficient. Now it's up to Congress, and the rest of us to respond.
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News: Update: Va. pol weighs in to expand service
A weekend editorial in the Richmond Times-Dispatch, by House of Delegate Representative Jennifer McClellan, urged the General Assembly not to make hasty decisions for long-term solutions to the mental health crisis in Virginia. Structural, financial, personnel, and other residual needs were under discussion before Virginia Tech renewed attention, adding to the intensity of the debate. The General Assembly meets biannually for 60 days, and McLellan (D) represents the 71st Dsitrict. A number of controversial bills for involuntary commitment have diverted...
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News: FDA's effectiveness questioned
A House subcommittee voted to subpoena former FDA officials to answer questions about fraudulent clinical data used to approve Ketek, an antibiotic with life-threatening complications including liver failure. The subpoena came at the end of a day when witness after witness testified that the FDA has fallen short of its oversight responsibilities to regulate and monitor food, drugs and medical devices. An outdated system of information technology, and budgetary constraints were among the factors enumerated by witnesses before the Subcommittee...
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News: Holding politicians accountable -- North Carolina
Charging that state leaders are indifferent to North Carolina’s crisis in mental health care, advocates have launched a campaign, NCMentalHealthVOTE.org, to make transparent candidates' opinions about how to address the service and treatment problems in need of repair....
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News: Candidates weigh in
Democratic candidates Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, and Barack Obama, and Republican John McCain responded to a survey about mental health issues distributed by the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). The only person to have a previously prepared remarks is former candidate Eliot Richardson....
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News: Hearings on vets' health
More than 40 percent of the veterans returning from Iraq require mental health treatment and the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs held hearings on eight relevant bills yesterday. They include: HR 4231 – Rural Veterans Health Care Access Act of 2007 -- calling for vouchers for services 30 miles from a VA facility – which the VA opposes arguing it creates fragmented care, permits a non-VA provider to recommend treatment, and applies to residents of urban as well as...
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News: Seniors pay more for Zoloft
Seniors enrolled in Medicare Part D will pay $369 more for five medications, including Zoloft, according to a study conducted by Consumers Union. Roughly 75 percent of the private insurance plans in Medicare Part D announced hikes for the coming year. Another study released this week, from Annals of Internal Medicine, examined a single pharmacy chain. Results from this national pharmacy indicate out-of-pocket costs had dropped and utilization had increased. Currently, Medicare is prevented from negotiating over price, which Rep....
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Commentary: Peer-to-Peer: Returning Vets' Mental Health Care
by Ralph Ibson

Soldiers in need of mental health treatment are returning from Iraq and Afghanistan in unprecedented numbers, stretching thin military services. Ralph Ibson, Mental Health America's Vice President for Government Affairs, explains how a program of peer-to-peer services could fill the void caused by long distances, understaffing, and personnel shortages.


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News: SCHIP stalemate
After a bruising fight over SCHIP Democrats had to accept defeat in their efforts to expand the current children's health insurance program. With the extension set to expire in March 2009, both parties are calculating how to turn this into an election-year advantage. Rep. Pete Stark (D-Cal), chairman of the House Ways and Means health subcommittee, intends to revisit this, along with revisions to Medicare and physician reimbursement. Related Why SCHIP matters to the mental health community...
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News: Activisits sue Schwarzenegger
Challenging a line-item veto for homeless services, a group of advocacy organizations filed suit against California's governor. Problems, they say, is that Schwarzenegger broke the law, and the promise of Prop 63, to serve mentally ill homeless recovery in the community....
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News: Insurance parity no shoe-in
Disagreements between the House and Senate may "thwart" reconciliation of their respective proposals for mental health parity insurance. According to the Daily Report from the Kaiser Family Foundation, lawmakers have characterized negotiations over the past month as difficult. The House version (HR 1424) is considered a more comprehensive bill, requiring coverage of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) disorders. It would also take effect in Jan. 2008. The Senate bill (S 558), which permits insurers to define the disorders, would be...
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News: Schwarzenegger doubts mental health courts
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that California’s Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger cited the cost ($14 million) and the fear that people who commit a crime might go unpunished “because of a mental health issue,” when he when vetoed the expansion of mental health courts. His action ignored evidence of success of court diversion and flies in the face of a national trend....
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News: Climate change affects mental health
The impact of climate change for people with mental illness was part of the testimony the Bush administration redacted from the Dr. Julie Gerberding’s prepared remarks at last week’s hearing before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Gerberding is director of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Refuting accusations circulating widely that redacting seven of 12 pages was actually censorship, Dr. John Marburger, Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy,said Gerberding’s testimony...
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Consider This: Meeting the crisis in veteran health
Rates of combat-related PTSD, anxiety disorders and depression are climbing off the charts for veterans and their families. But will competing blue-panel commissions slow progress in closing the gaps in the veteran health crisis?
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News: House fails to override SCHIP veto
The House failed to gather a two-thirds majority to override a presidential veto of the States Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The largely partisan vote, 273 to 156, included 44 Republicans joining Democrats to override, and two Democrats voting to sustain the veto. Two of each party did not vote. Rep. John Boehner, House Minority leader, accused the Democrats of not paying attention to poor children; Speaker Nancy Pelosi said the president is isolated from the nation's consensus and promised...
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News: Another step for parity bill
By a vote of 32-13, the House Energy and Commerce Committee approved a bill to eliminate insurance bias in treating mental illness and substance abuse disorders. Five Republicans joined 27 Democrats to approve the measure, but not before Republicans tried to reword it in accord with the Senate version which allows insurance companies, along with business, to specify relevant disorders. This bill has been championed by Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MI), pictured here, who have described their...
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News: Wellstone Act moving through subcommittees
Today a House subcommittee is expected to approve the "Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act" (HR 1424), the insurance parity bill championed by Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI). The bill has 240 co-sponsors, making it likely to win House approval. Many differences between the Senate (S 558) and House versions have already been ironed out, but a major sticking point is who defines the illness. The Senate's bill relies on providers and employers, while the House version is tagged...
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News: Trent Lott invokes common sense
Blogging on the website Human Events, Sen. Trent Lott (R-Miss) supported President Bush's veto of SCHIP, and questioned its funding with higher cigarette taxes: "Some contend that when you increase tobacco taxes, tobacco use drops. Common sense, often missing from Washington debates, says we can't have it both ways. If we tax people out of smoking, then we're taxing children off SCHIP." Nearly 435,000 people a year die from tobacco-related causes, many after suffering lengthy and costly medical care. And...
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News: Swift response to Bush's veto of SCHIP
President Bush followed through on promises to veto the States Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), which lapsed on Sunday. The veto, the fourth of his presidency, came behind closed doors. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md) said he will not rush to schedule a vote to override, hoping 15 of the 159 who originally voted against the measure will change their minds. Meanwhile, contradictory messages are coming from the White House. Bush told a crowd in Lancaster, Pa., that he...
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News: SCHIP showdown
Congress and the Bush administration will test wills over the States Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) which the president threatens to veto. Neither bi-partisan endorsements, nor huge public support have moved the president who remains stubbornly opposed to this proven, successful program. The House might vote today on a compromise measure which costs $60 billion over five years ($35 billion more than at present) and is paid for by a hike in cigarette taxes to $1 a pack. At least...
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News: SCHIP--a decade later
A study about SCHIP since its implementation in 1997 concludes that the children's insurance program, which expires on Sept. 30, improved access significantly. The report from Mathematica Policy Research notes retentions varied considerably, ranging from 31percent to 98 percent, and that gaps in enrollment were most evident for kids with special health needs and children of ethnic and racial minorities. SCHIP was particularly important during the recession of 2000-2003, when many families stopped paying for insurance coverage. According to Mathematica,...
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News: A step closer to insurance parity
By unanimous consent Tuesday night, the Senate passed a mental health parity insurance bill (S. 558) eliminating barriers for people seeking treatment for mental illness and addiction disorders. This applies to businesses with 50 or more employees. The bill was co-sponsored by Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.), and Sen. Pete Domenici (R-NM), both long-time champions of health reform. Domenici is also a former board member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). He previously sponsored the 1996 Mental Health Parity...
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News: SCHIP edict harnesses New York
The federal government has declined New York's request to expand SCHIP enrollment to families earning four times the federal poverty level (or roughly $81,000). Another 70,000 kids could be covered by New York's request which currently enrolls 88 percent of those eligible. The Bush administration's edict demands 95 percent enrollment, leading the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to assert, New York "has not demonstrated that its program operates in an effective and efficient manner with respect to the core...
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News: Russian dissidents hospitalized
Resorting to old tactics to silence critics, Russia has detained at least ten people, including three journalists, in psychiatric hospitals in the past year. Newsweek International reports that Larisa Arap, who was released August 21 from forced hospitalization after 46 days, was the most prominent but by no means the only critic to be confined by the state. Arap is active in the United Civil Front, an opposition group led by chess champion Garry Kasparov. But most likely it was...
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Consider This: The SCHIP debate heats up
by Phyllis Vine
An MIWatch Commentary addresses the intense reaction to the Bush administration's edict revising the States Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP).
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News: Calif. cuts budget for mentally ill homeless
Following through on a threat to cut $55 million for a program serving California's homeless mentally ill, Gov. Arnold Schwarznegger said cities and counties could step in to fill the gap. Mental health advocates have complained that the same line-item decisions that cut the program known as Integrated Services from a $145.5 billion budget supported $45 million in tax advantages for the owners of yachts and planes. Since 1999, the program has been credited with reduced costs for hospitalization, incarceration,...
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News: Reactions to Bush on SCHIP
The response to the administration’s announcement of a unilateral decision to limit SCHIP (States Children's Health Insurance Program) to families earning twice the federal poverty rate has created an August storm. At least 18 states are affected. The edict also requires children to verify that they have been uninsured for at least one year before enrolling; and states must enroll 95 percent of the kids meeting those standards before they may expand. Below is a sample of reactions: In Iowa,...
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News: New bar on SCHIP
The Bush administration has challenged state eligibility criteria in its on-going battle over expanding SCHIP, State Children's Health Insurance Program. State health commissioners received notice of a new federal policy by letter last Friday evening, saying 95 percent of the kids at 200 percent of the federal poverty level, or $41,300 for a family of four, must be enrolled before more children will be accepted. Previously states, especially those with high costs of living, set their own limits -- 300...
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News: States hassle over SCHIP
The Kaiser Foundation reports a debate in the nation's press over expanding insurance for children while Congress hears from locals during its summer break and states are examining their responsibilities. Last week, a Wall Street Journal editorial criticized the vote for SCHIP (State Children's Health Insurance Program), called CHAMP in the House (HR 3162), for appearing as a Trojan Horse to expand government. The editorial took comfort that the president has promised a veto for a measure it termed "so...
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News: What's to debate?
When all studies show a slide in American health indicators -- last in infant mortality (23rd of 23), average life expectancy coming in at 60 years (15th of 19), deplorable rankings in "access, patient safety, efficiency and equity," and with those with a serious mental illness dying 25 years younger, why is there any debate about closing the gap? Ad campaigns began this week targeting five Republicans who voted against SCHIP. The National Republican Congressional Committee predicts it will backfire....
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Consider This: Why SCHIP matters to the mental health community
by Phyllis Vine
The States Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) has huge implications for access to mental health providers and sustained treatments for an additional 3.3 million kids. Who could object?
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News: Senate passes SCHIP
With a safe margin of 68-31, the Senate passed the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). Now the House and Senate versions go to conference with a strong likelihood of an agreement before current legislation expires on Sept. 30. Differences needing to be resolved include revenue sources to pay for the program. The House version trims Medicare Advantage, reported to be bloated; and the chambers have differing proposals for hiking cigarettes taxes. Although Republican support was strong ("Covering these children...
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News: House endorses children's health insurance
By a vote of 225-204, the House passed a controversial measure, States Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP), to expand insurance coverage for kids from poor and working poor families. Because of the expanded protections for people with a mental illness, the American Psychiatric Association issued an immediate press release applauding the vote for bringing coinsurance down from 50 percent to 20 percent (effective 2008), broadening the number of medications available to treat anxiety disorders and other psychiatric conditions, and trimming...
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News: Reid supports independent Wounded Warrior bill
Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev) proposes to untangle the Wounded Warrior Bill from the defense reauthorization bill for a vote before the August recess. The House passed a bill (HR. 1585) in March, but in the Senate (S.1606) it became bogged down in spending for the Iraq war. The bill contains measures to improve dilapidated facilities, speed transition from military to veteran systems, and beef up treatment for brain injury and psychiatric disorders such as PTSD....
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News: Trim Medicare Advantage to pay for SCHIP
In a move that's likely to increase open conflict with the Bush administration, House Democrats point to trimming bloated costs of Medicare Advantage to offset increases for SCHIP. Public opinion and the nation's governors want children covered -- even the insurance industry is floating support -- but the president continues to portray this as an "encroachment of the federal government on the health care system."...
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News: Senate panel defies Bush on SCHIP
In clear defiance of President Bush's threatened veto, a bipartisan Senate panel voted 17- 4 to expand health insurance for low-income children. Current funding for the States Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) runs out in Sept. The Senate voted an additional $35 billion over the president's request of $5 billion a year, providing for more than three million kids. Six million still have no coverage....
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News: Calif. gov proposes cuts for homeless mentally ill
The Los Angeles Times urges California's governor Arnold Schwarznegger to retract his controversial plan to cut $55 million from the state's successful program for homeless mentally ill people. He points to Prop 63, which voters approved to finance county programs for mental health care, to pick up the program locally. While Prop 63 promises to generate billions, it cannot be used for existing programs....
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News: Wellstone Equity Act voted out of committee
The House Education and Labor Committee voted to approve the Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act (HR 1424) by a vote of 33-9. Eight Republicans joined the majority of Democrats. Before the final vote, an amendment to substitute the Senate's version of an equity bill (S 558) was defeated. The Wellstone Act next goes to the Committee of Energy and Commerce, then Ways and Means....
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News: Pass parity say former first ladies
Washington Times, July 18, 2007 Former first ladies Betty Ford and Rosalynn Carter urge passage of the Wellstone Act (HR 1424) to end bias and reduce barriers to treating mental illness and substance abuse disorders. Cost for this has been estimated at "less than a loaf of bread per person per month," they say. "Our country can afford to end this discrimination. "...
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News: Veto planned for bipartisan SCHIP deal
AP// San Francisco Chronicle, July 16, 2007 A White House spokesman said President Bush plans to veto the Senate's bipartisan agreement to hike cigarette taxes to pay for the administration's shortfall funding for States Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). The White House opposes expanding the program guaranteeing insurance to include poor or working poor parents along with their children....
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News: Insuring kids--a review of SCHIP
New England Journal of Medicine, July 5, 2007 A Sept 30th deadline for reauthorizing the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) positions poor kids, and those of the working poor, in the middle of a debate over public versus private insurance. And politics: Bush wants to tighten eligibility and cut spending, while Dems want to triple funding....
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News: Mental illness and voting rights
For decades, the right to vote has defined participation in civil society. At one time the debate over who should have the franchise hinged on race, then on gender, and each expansion of voting rights signaled society's shift in social and legal norms. Now the question is being posed about people with mental illnesses. A story in the New York Times reports where the lines are drawn, and where some would like to draw them: legal insanity, incompetence, bipolar disorder...
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News: NY’s gov stalls prison reform for mentally ill inmates
Albany Times Union, June 5, 2007 New York’s governor Elliot Spitzer appears to have withdrawn support from a bill transferring mentally ill prisoners out of solitary lock-ups called “the box.” Additional expenses were given as an explanation. The bill was unanimously approved by Senate. It now goes to the Assembly and has the support of the New York State Correctional Officers and the Police Benevolent Association. Between 300-500 prisoners held under 21-23 hours of isolation in so-called Special Housing Units...
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News: American Enterprise Institute takes aim at SAMHSA
Psychiatrist Sally Satel, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, blasts SAMHSA for, among other things, its recovery focus, calling it a “one-size-fits-all fantasy.” To argue her point, Satel invokes the tragic death of Kendra Webdale, but she omits facts about the assailant’s pursuit of treatment. Knowing her dogged promotion of outpatient commitment, and in the shadow of Virginia Tech, one wonders what she’s got in mind by saying, “There has been murmuring on Capitol Hill of forthcoming proposals to...
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News: Harkin opposes reductions in NIH budget
Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), chair of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and Human Services, asked the committee to reject the administration’s proposals to reduce the National Institute of Health (NIH) ’08 budget according to Kaiser Daily Reports....
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News: Gun laws specify mental illness
Bazelon Mental Health Center, May 17, 2007 In the aftermath of Virginia Tech, states are revisiting their procedures for reporting to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). Despite gaping holes in record keeping, in states such as Maine debates have focused on people with mental illness. The Bazelon Mental Health Center cautions states should maintain privacy rights, as well as other protection for people who have successfully received treatments. The National Stigma Clearinghouse writes when 54 million people...
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Links: Government Resources
Information about public resources, medication, legislation, or policy.
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News: NICS targets mentally ill
Stigmanet, May 2, 2007 In the aftermath of Virginia Tech, Stigmanet identifies how renewed federal efforts to pass gun control laws, the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS), concentrate “on the mentally ill while ignoring huge gaps in the NICS database of criminal records.”...
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Interviews: Q & A with Rep. Jim Ramstad (R-MN) on insurance parity
by Phyllis Vine
Rep. Jim Ramstad talks about insurance parity which will put psychiatric and addi tive disorders on par with physican ailments.
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News: Kennedy father and son disagree
The New York Times calls the difference between Senator Ted Kennedy and his son, Rep. Patrick Kennedy, one of pragmatism versus passion for enacting mental health insurance parity. Senate and House bills differ on parity Word play alone should not obscure variations in the bill each chamber is considering to correct well-known disparities covering people with serious mental illness. Both, the the Senate version (S. 558) sponsored by Senator Pete Dominici with 25 co-sponsors, and the House version (HR 1424)...
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