| APAPAC Events
4/29 - 8:30 a.m. - Rep. Jim Matheson (D-UT)
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DGR Telephone:
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Follow APA Advocacy on Twitter!
The APA Department of Government Relations is now on Twitter! Now you can find out about APA Advocacy activities, Congressional hearings, mark-ups, and floor votes in real time.
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Questions about the Twitter page or how to set up an account? Please contact Kate McAllister at advocacy@psych.org. |
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Dr. Walker Testifies on Indian Health Service
On April 15, R. Dale Walker, M.D., former chair of the APA's Council on Advocacy and Government Relations and Director of the One Sky Center in Portland, Oregon, testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on the Interior. Dr. Walker told Representative James Moran (D-VA), chair of the Subcommittee of the Indian Health Services' progress recognizing the seriousness of addiction, domestic violence and mental illnesses in the Native American community. Dr. Walker stressed that more funding, hiring more physicians and integrating care into community settings were necessary to reduce the rate of suicide and improve the quality of life. |
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Veterans' Omnibus Bill Finally Passes Congress
For the past few months, legislation to improve care for women veterans and returning military was held up in a legislative logjam. On April 22, the Senate passed the bill by unanimous voice vote after the House of Representatives approved the measure on April 21. The measure, S 1963, the Caregivers and Veterans Omnibus Health Services Act, addresses a number of issues related to veterans' health care. It merges two bills: S. 801, provides benefits to caregivers of severely injured veterans and S. 252, a health omnibus measure, contains a variety of provisions that serve to improve such matters as VA department personnel, quality management, outreach to women veterans, rural veterans, and homeless veterans, research, mental health care, and safety in and around VA facilities. The legislation now heads to the White House for the President's signature. Please click here to read more about the bill:
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Senate Budget Committee Approves FY 2011 Budget Resolution
On April 23, the Senate Budget Committee amended and approved, 12-10, its FY 2011 Budget Resolution. The budget blueprint sets the spending cap at $1.12 trillion, which is $4 billion below the president's budget request, and freezes non-security discretionary spending for three years. For discretionary health programs (Function 550), the resolution assumes $59.8 billion, a $1.5 billion increase over FY 2010 and consistent with the president's FY 2011 request. Discretionary health programs include NIH and SAMHSA. During the two-day mark-up, the committee considered several amendments. The committee rejected an amendment sponsored by Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) to impose discretionary spending caps over FYs 2011-2015 (with 67 votes required to waive the caps), as well as an amendment sponsored by Senator Jeff Cornyn (R-TX) to rescind $42 billion in unobligated funds from ARRA. The committee approved an amendment sponsored by Senator Russ Feingold (D-WI) to require that additional spending for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan be offset over 10 years, among other amendments. |
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House Committee Holds First Hearing on Juvenile Justice Reauthorization
The House Committee on Education and Labor, the primary committee of jurisdiction over this effort, held its first hearing on reauthorization of the Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention Act of 1974 this week. The committee, with Chairman George Miller (D-CA) at the gavel, heard testimony from advocates and administrators on the merits of passing legislation this Congress. While companion Senate legislation has been introduced and approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee, a House bill reauthorizing the program is pending introduction. Among other necessary reforms related to treatment of youths in the system, the Senate bill calls for evidence-based approaches in mental health and substance use screening, assessments, and treatment including diversion to home-based and community-based services, while also encouraging safe and effective treatment for youth in confinement. |
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