| APAPAC Events
5/11 - 10:00 a.m. - Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC) Meet and Greet Event
5/12 - 9:00 a.m. - Rep. Pete Stark (D-CA)
5/13 - 8:00 a.m. - Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) |
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DGR Telephone:
703-907-7800 | |
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.
Please click on the following link to start following APA Advocacy Twitter:
http://twitter.com/apa_
advocacy
Questions about the Twitter page or how to set up an account? Please contact Kate McAllister at advocacy@psych.org. |
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Advocacy Webinars
Get on the Advocacy Train! DGR is now offering Advocacy Training and Legislative Update Webinars! Visit the website below to view a recording of the first webinar on Advocacy Training.
www.psych.org/advocacytrain
Please email advocacy@psych.org if you would like to be invited to attend the Advocacy Webinar Sessions. |
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Leahy Introduces Amendment to Repeal Antitrust Exemption for Health Insurers
On May 5, Senator Patrick Leahy (D-VT) filed an amendment to the pending financial regulatory reform legislation (S. 3217) that would repeal the federal antitrust exemption for health insurers provided under the McCarran-Ferguson Act. The amendment has 21 cosponsors. In September 2009, Senator Leahy introduced stand-alone legislation (S. 1681) similar to the amendment, but that bill also ended the exemption for medical malpractice insurers. The House approved legislation ending the antitrust exemption for health insurers only (H.R. 4626) by a vote of 406-19 in February. America's Health Insurance Plans, a trade group for private insurers, has said throughout debate on the repeal that insurers already are subject to state oversight and federal antitrust laws enforced by the Department of Justice, and has disputed claims that the exemption allows insurers to engage in practices such as price fixing, market allocation, or bid rigging. |
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House Appropriations Committee Chair to Retire
Rep. David R. Obey (D-WI) surprised Capitol Hill on May 5 by announcing that he will retire at the end of the year. Congressman Obey cited "fatigue and frustration" as the reasons for his retirement. Obey has served for more than four decades as the representative of Wisconsin's northwestern 7th district. He has been a strong and stalwart advocate for children's mental health services funding, research at NIH, as well as early intervention programs for people with substance use issues. Rep. Norm Dicks (D-WA), will seek to succeed Rep. Obey as chairman of the Appropriations Committee. |
| NIH Director Testifies before Senate Subcommittee
NIH Director Francis Collins, M.D., Ph.D., testified on May 5 before the Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee one week after presenting testimony before the House counterpart. Subcommittee Chair Senator Tom Harkin (D-IA) praised the agency's work and asked what challenges NIH will face when ARRA (American Recovery and Reinvestment Act) grants expire, but also repeatedly acknowledged that the subcommittee will be forced to make "tough decisions ... And some of our friends are not going to be very happy with some of the decisions we make." Senator Arlen Specter (D-PA) encouraged NIH to quantify the lives saved/prolonged and cost-benefits as a result of medical research to help better express the case for support, and Ranking Member Thad Cochran (R-MS) inquired about "blockbuster" research and researchers at NIH. |
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Bullying Prevention Bill Introduced in the House
Representative Danny K. Davis (D-IL) recently introduced a bill (H.R. 5184) in the House that would amend the Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act to include bullying and harassment prevention programs. H.R. 5184 would require local education agencies to include bullying and harassment education and prevention programs as part of the larger Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) which is currently being reauthorized. |
APA Sponsored Events
The APA is co-sponsoring two Congressional Briefings this week:
Military Mental Health Day on May 13 and a Friends of NIDA briefing featuring Dr. Nora Volkow, Director of the National Institutes of Drug Abuse, speaking on the development of medications to treat addictions on May 11. |
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Rules Issued for Insurance Coverage for Children Up to Age 26
On May 11, the IRS, along with the Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services, issued interim final regulations for group health plans and health insurers implementing health insurance coverage for dependent children to age 26. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act requires group health plans and health insurers that provide dependent care coverage to continue to make coverage available for any adult child of a plan participant up to age 26. The interim final regulations provide transitional relief for a child whose coverage ended, or who was denied coverage (or was not eligible for coverage) under a group health plan or health insurance coverage because, under the terms of the plan or coverage, the availability of dependent coverage of children ended before the attainment of age 26. The interim final regulations require a plan or issuer to give such a child an opportunity to enroll for at least 30 days, starting not later than the first day of the plan year beginning on or after Sept. 23, 2010. |
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