APA’s Government, Policy, and Advocacy Update (June 2021)

APA Provides Congress With Testimony On MH Parity, Telehealth

APA provided testimony to the House of Representatives’ Health, Employment, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Subcommittee for its hearing, “Meeting the Moment: Improving Access to Behavioral and Mental Health Care.” Witnesses during the hearing discussed network adequacy; enforcement of mental health parity; and last year’s mental health parity legislation, which APA helped enact.

In written testimony, APA emphasized the importance of ensuring equitable access to mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) treatment. APA applauded the inclusion of new parity compliance requirements for health insurers in last year’s appropriations package and recommended additional funding so states and federal agencies have the resources necessary to ensure health plans are in compliance with the law.

The testimony also outlined data related to health disparities. “[W]e cannot begin to improve our country’s overall mental health without concurrently addressing health disparities,” the testimony stated. APA urged Congress to investigate opportunities to recruit and retain more Black, Indigenous, and People of Color into health care to improve access to culturally competent care and to invest in community-based support systems to help communities address social determinants of health.

APA similarly provided testimony to the House Ways and Means Committee for its hearing, “Charting the Path Forward on Telehealth.” The testimony explained how telehealth flexibilities allowed during the COVID-19 public health emergency enabled large numbers of people to access care.

“APA agrees that telehealth should not replace in-person services; it should amplify and enhance access to needed services when clinically appropriate,” the testimony stated. “We encourage Congress to extend the current telehealth flexibilities beyond the current public health emergency to avoid an abrupt halt and disruption to the access and delivery of mental health and SUD services via telehealth.”

Senate Passes COVID-19 Hate Crimes Act

APA-supported legislation addressing the rise of hate crimes and violence toward Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders during the COVID-19 pandemic passed the Senate in late April.

Sponsored by Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), the legislation would assign a designated Department of Justice employee to facilitate the review of hate crimes; require the department to issue guidance to state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to establish online hate crime reporting processes; and establish grants for states to create reporting hotlines for hate crimes.

Group of Six Praises Investment in Gun Violence Interventions

APA and its five partner organizations, collectively known as the Group of Six, issued a news release praising the recent Biden administration’s announcement of actions it will take to address gun violence. “Gun violence is a public health epidemic, and recent mass shootings around the country, along with other sources of firearm violence and injury, underscore that this remains a serious issue,” the release stated.

The Biden administration announced six initial actions to address gun violence, such as investing in evidence-based community violence interventions, publishing model red flag legislation (which allows family members or law enforcement to petition courts to bar people in crisis from accessing firearms) for states, and requiring the Department of Justice to issue an annual report on firearms trafficking.

“The administration’s commitment to investing in programs and resources at the local level for violence intervention is a welcome first step to help provide for healthy and safe communities,” the release stated. It further urged legislative action to comprehensively address the gun violence epidemic.

APA Develops Quality Measures to Advance Measurement-Based Care

In 2018, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced that APA was awarded funding to develop a suite of measures aimed at promoting and advancing measurement-based care (MBC). The set includes a measure assessing adherence to MBC processes, outcome measures based on patient-reported assessments of function and recovery, and measures assessing suicide safety planning processes and outcomes. The measures were recently posted for public comment, and submitted comments were reviewed by the project’s Technical Expert and Consumer and Family panels. More information is posted here. ■