The Bazelon Mental Health Policy Reporter

Volume III : Issue 6 : Sept. 22, 2004

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What's in this issue?

Feature Article: Lawmakers Pass Youth Suicide Prevention Bill

Newsbytes

• Senate Committee Fully Funds State Transformation Grants
• Campaign for Mental Health Reform Releases Medicaid Briefing Paper
• Election 2004

New Resources from the Bazelon Center

Lawmakers Pass Youth Suicide Prevention Bill

(Sept. 22, 2004)—Despite their crowded calendar, lawmakers this month found time to approve important legislation to reduce suicide among young people.

On September 9, the House passed the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act (S. 2634) on a vote of 352-64. The Senate, which passed the bill by unanimous consent in July, acted quickly to embrace House changes and has sent the bill to President Bush to be signed into law.

The Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act combines The Campus Care and Counseling Act (S. 2215)and The Youth Suicide, Early Intervention and Prevention Expansion Act (S. 2175). It authorizes $82 million for three-year grants to help states, tribes, and colleges and universities fund development and expansion of early intervention and prevention strategies to provide coordinated and appropriate mental health services to children and young adults. The bipartisan legislation also encourages better data sharing and dissemination of research on the most effective ways to reduce youth suicide.

Suicide is the third leading cause of death among Americans ages 10 to 24, according to the Centers for Disease Control. In 2001 alone, more than 4,000 young people took their own lives.

The legislation, sponsored by Senators Christopher Dodd (D-CT) and Mike DeWine (R-OH) and Representatives Bart Gordon (R-TN), is named in remembrance of Garrett Smith. Smith, who committed suicide last year just two days before his 23rd birthday, was the son of Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR) and his wife Sharon.

"I will admit that I did not fully appreciate how lethal mental illnesses can be until our family tragedy befell us," Senator Smith said in a Sept. 10 interview with The Oregonian. "But having experienced that, I take from that sorrow a sense of determination to help others. That's the way I find new meaning in the life of my son."

With passage of S. 2634, Congress has authorized, but not yet appropriated money for the bill’s grants. The House and the Senate Appropriations Committee have passed spending bills to fund programs and services within the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the federal agency that will administer the grants.

“This is an authorization bill,” explained Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) in his Sept. 9 comments on the Senate floor. “We need the appropriators to feel as we do and put money into this project.”

With the appropriations process already well under way, efforts focus on including FY 2005 funding for S. 2634’s grants in a final spending bill.

More Information:

• Thank lawmakers for passing the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act
• View supporters of the bill
• Read the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act (as passed by the House and Senate)

Newsbytes

Senate Committee Fully Funds State Transformation Grants

Last week, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved its version of the spending bill for the Center for Mental Health Services within the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. The bill provides full funding for the new state incentives transformation grants to help states formulate collaborative plans to transform their fragmented public mental health systems and address the unmet mental health needs of children and adults who rely on those systems. Other programs and services closely mirror those passed by the House.

In fully funding the new State Incentive Grants for Transformation at the President's requested level of $44 million, the bill also directs SAMHSA to ensure that state mental health planning and advisory councils play a significant role in the development of these comprehensive state plans. The committee recognizes the importance of the consumer and family voice these councils provide in the states.

Campaign for Mental Health Reform Releases Medicaid Briefing Paper

The Campaign for Mental Health Reform, a national partnership of organizations working to transform the mental health system, has released a new analysis on Medicaid reform. The briefing paper looks at Medicaid’s critical role in helping people with mental disorders to live, work, learn and succeed in their communities and discusses major proposals to reform the program that are on the horizon. While lawmakers did not consider Medicaid reform this year, they are likely to do so in 2005.

• Read a browser-friendly HTML version of the briefing paper
• Read a printer-friendly PDF version of the briefing paper

Election 2004

As we approach the Nov. 2 election, it’s important to recognize the tremendous stake people with mental illnesses have in local, state and national elections. Today's candidates determine tomorrow's policies, from setting funding levels for healthcare, job training and other public services to approving the federal judges who interpret key legal protections for people with disabilities.

• Find out where your Congressional candidates stand on the issues with this candidate questionnaire.
• Register to vote. In many states, the deadline to register to vote is fast approaching. Make sure you can participate in the democratic process.

New Resources from the Bazelon Center

• Get It Together: How to Integrate Physical and Mental Health Care for People with Serious Mental Disorders
• Evidence-Based Services and Emerging Best Practice for Treating Mental Disorders in Adults and Children (Campaign for Mental Health Reform)
• Children's Mental Health Fact Sheets

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