APA’s Government, Policy, and Advocacy Update
APA Leaders Applaud Passage of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021
APA’s leaders praised the inclusion of several provisions related to mental health in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (HR 1319). The legislation includes about $4 billion in funding for programs that support the prevention of and treatment for mental and substance use disorders.
“We will not recover sufficiently from this pandemic long term unless we address our mental health with the same urgency and attention as our physical health,” said APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A., in a news release. “This package is a huge step in the right direction, and we look forward to working with Congress and the administration to implement policies and services that will help all our patients.”
APA supported several provisions in the legislation, including funding for mental and substance use disorder services through programs including the Community Mental Health Services and Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment block grants, Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics, and the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, as well as expanded eligibility for premium assistance under the Affordable Care Act, increased Medicaid funding, and funding to promote mental health integration with pediatric primary care.
“It is essential and heartening that Congress and the administration included funding for our nation’s mental health system in this wave of COVID relief,” APA President Jeffrey Geller, M.D., M.P.H., said in the news release.
APA Urges Governors to Make Telehealth Flexibilities Permanent
APA and eight other medical organizations, representing more than 350,000 physicians, sent a letter to state governors urging them to support legislation and regulations to permanently retain the telemedicine rules that had been relaxed at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. The letter was sent to the National Governors Association, the National Conference of State Legislators, and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners.
“The ability to see a patient via telemedicine should be driven by clinical decision making over any other factors,” the letter stated. “When the public health emergency ends, telemedicine should remain an option for providing care.”
ATTAIN Act Receives APA Endorsement
Last month, Sens. Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) reintroduced the Achieving Through Transparency and Accountability for Information Navigation (ATTAIN) on Mental Health Act. The legislation aims to create an online dashboard through which applicants, such as nonprofits, mental health treatment facilities, or state and local educational agencies, can identify federal grants that support mental health initiatives.
APA supports the bill. In a news release, APA President Jeffrey Geller, M.D., M.P.H., said the bill is a “good first step” to ensure access to mental health funding for communities in need.
“As the COVID-19 pandemic has continued, we have seen an increase in rates of anxiety, depression, suicide, and other mental illnesses,” Geller continued. “Providing states, localities, and other organizations with easy-to-access information regarding available federal funding for mental health programs will help them meet the increasing need for treatment faster.”
APA, Partner Organizations Offer Recommendations to Biden
In a letter to President Joe Biden, APA and five of its partner organizations—collectively known as the Group of Six—outlined several health care issues that they urged the president to prioritize.
The recommendations include implementing a science-based and public health approach to end the COVID-19 pandemic, expanding health care coverage and protecting access to care, expanding and strengthening Medicaid, improving health care for women, and ending interference in the patient-physician relationship, addressing physician workforce issues, addressing health disparities, and reducing the administrative burden in health care. ■
