Because love is not enough,
have your congressman sign The Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act of 2013.
September 23, 2014Greetings Mental Health Advocate,
I recognize that it has been some time since I have communicated with you on Congressman Tim Murphy's [R-PA-18] bill H.R. 3717, "Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act of 2013."
Has your congressman shown his support for H.R. 3717? Find out here. Click on cosponsors
The good news is that mental health care reform is getting attention. The bad news is some support may have been lost for H.R. 3717 when competing bill H. R. 4574 was introduced by Representative Ron Barber [D-AZ-2].
We need your help. We need you to call your congressman to become a co-sponsor of H.R. 3717, The Helping Families In Mental Health Crisis Act.
1. Urgently needed resources for suicide prevention
2. Federal resources for jail diversion and community reentry of persons with mental illness and co-occurring substance use disorders involved with criminal justice systems
3. Protections in access to psychiatric medications in Medicare and Medicaid
4. Expanded eligibility for federal resources to improve health information technology and electronic health information technology for mental health programs and providers, and
5. Authorizing same day billing in Medicaid for mental health and physical healthcare services, thereby improving integrated mental and physical healthcare.
There are some key differences in the two bills that have generated much public discussion. Here are some examples:
1. HR 3717 creates an exception to the current Institutions for Mental Diseases (IMD) exclusion in Medicaid to permit federal Medicaid dollars to be used to pay for acute inpatient psychiatric treatment. HR 4574 does not address this issue.
2. HR 3717 proposes changes to the federal health privacy law (HIPAA) that would provide families and caregivers with more access to information necessary to serve in a care giving role. HR 4574 does not address this issue.
3. HR 3717 contains provisions limiting the authority of the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and the federal Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) programs. There is no comparable provision in HR 4574.
4. HR 3717 contains provisions to broaden the use of inpatient and outpatient civil commitment. There is no comparable provision in HR 4574.
H. R. 3717 has the full support of NAMI Edmond-North OKC
as it is a more comprehensive bill that strengthens what is working, addresses what is not working, and it focuses on the hardest-to-treat group, those without insight into their illness.
Tim Murphy spoke to a room full of National Alliance on Mental Illness members at the National Convention in September 2014. Murphy said, "[Our mental health system] is a broken system that must be changed." NAMI is a grass roots movement for change motivated by love and "It will be love that will win in the long run," said Murphy.
If love was enough our loved ones with serious mental illness would not be as likely to be homeless, incarcerated, unemployed or die 25 years too young. We are grateful for Rep. Tim Murphy's leadership.
We have an urgent request. We need you to call your congressman, asking him or her to become a co-sponsor of H.R. 3717, The Helping Families In Mental Health Crisis Act.
To make an Ask of your representative, have he or she make the call to Representative Tim Murphy's office at (202) 225 - 2301 and volunteer to sign up as a co-sponsor.
In order for this legislation to go to a vote in this the 113th legislative session the bill needs more support. Today the H.R. 3717 has 108 cosigners. Today through the end of October we urge you to lobby your representative to sign the bill or thank himfor his support and work to ensure that his or her support does not waver.
You will know if your Ask has been accepted by reviewing the official roster of co-sponsors at Look for support from my district
You can get the telephone number for your legislator by clicking on Find my Representative
It's a well-known fact that 2/3rds of the people do not like to or will not make an Ask. I ask of you to be part of the 1/3rd who is not embarrassed to make an Ask of your legislator.
If you do not see your district being represented it is okay to make that call again. It is not uncommon for advocates to make 3 phone calls making the same Ask. I know that you can do this. You will feel empowered by doing this deed.
Make your call out of true love for those who have a mental illness diagnosis or are not in treatment.
Thank you.
Jean Williams and Randy Conyers
jean@NamiEdmond.org RandallConyers@yahoo.com
http://petitions.moveon.org/sign/fix-why-so-many-living-1
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