House Democrats Introduce Mental Health Reform Bill

The Strengthening Mental Health in Our Communities Act (HR 4574) was introduced in Congress May 6 by Rep. Ron Barber (D-Ariz.), calling for the creation of a White House Office of Mental Health Policy and the development of what he calls a “national strategy for mental health.”

The bill is similar to—but in some areas significantly different from—the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act (HR 3717), sponsored by Rep. Tim Murphy (R-Pa.). While the Barber bill opts for a White House Office of Mental Health Policy, for example, the Murphy bill would create an assistant secretary of mental health and substance use within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). In addition, the new bill introduced by Barber contains many fewer reforms to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and is not as supportive of assisted outpatient treatment as the Murphy bill is. For instance, the Murphy bill would encourage states to adopt a “need-for-treatment” standard for assisted outpatient treatment (Psychiatric News, April 25).

The new bill is regarded as a response by Democrats in Congress to the Republican-sponsored Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act—the Murphy bill— and will likely serve as a negotiating tool for compromise legislation on mental health care.

In a May 15 letter to Barber, APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A., emphasized that the United States is at a historic crossroads in its treatment of individuals with serious mental illnesses and its ability to deal with the personal, economic, and moral consequences of untreated psychiatric disorders. “Your Strengthening Mental Health in Our Communities Act contains several reforms that are important to improving this untenable situation,” he wrote.

“As you are aware,” Levin added, “comprehensive mental health legislation (HR 3717, the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act) has been introduced by Representative Tim Murphy that emphasizes the provision of evidence-based psychiatric services and research supports. It is APA’s hope that lawmakers in both parties, in collaboration with the mental health advocacy community, can move forward with bipartisan expansive mental health legislation that significantly and positively reforms our nation’s severely flawed mental health system.”

Among the provisions in the new bill, sponsored by Barber, are the following:

Summaries of the Strengthening Mental Health in Our Communities Act (HR 4574) and the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act (HR 3717) can be accessed here.