Congressional Champions

Senator Richard Blumenthal was awarded the Congressional Champion Award during the APA Services June 2023 grassroots fly-in for his steadfast support of efforts to curtail the negative impacts of social media on young people. Through the sponsoring and championing of the Kids Online Safety Act (S.1409) along with Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee), Sen. Blumenthal has helped to bring attention to this issue and keep it on the front of Congress’s mind. His work on this legislation builds on a legacy of being a passionate leader for mental health parity and champion for increasing access to behavioral healthcare.

In accepting the award in person, Senator Blumenthal remarked, “We are in the midst of a national youth mental health crisis exacerbated by social media and the toxic content that big tech companies are directing at kids. With their black box algorithms promoting eating disorders, self-harm, substance abuse, and bullying, tech giants are putting profits over safety, and young people are the ones most at-risk. I am proud to have worked with the American Psychological Association on the Kids Online Safety Act to provide users with the tools, safeguards, and transparency they need to take back control of their online lives. With the help of supporters like the APA, the movement to protect kids online will result in real change and action.”

Senator John Barrasso was awarded the Congressional Champion Award during the Spring 2023 Summit: Advocating to strengthen the psychology workforce and improve health equity for his dedication to promoting psychology and for his work in expanding access to mental health services covered in Medicare and in helping to modernize rural health clinics. Along with Senator Michael Bennet, he is leading bipartisan efforts to support reimbursement for advanced psychology trainees in Medicare, which would expand the psychology workforce and increase access to mental and behavioral health services, particularly in rural communities. In addition to the Medicare trainee legislation, Senator Barrasso has sponsored legislation such as the Rural Health Clinic Modernization Act and the Mental Health Access Improvement Act.

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Senator Michael Bennet was awarded the Congressional Champion Award during the Spring 2023 Summit: Advocating to strengthen the psychology workforce and improve health equity for his leadership in strengthening mental health access for all Americans and for his work to improve mental health parity in Medicare and Medicaid. Along with Senator John Barrasso, he is leading bipartisan efforts to support reimbursement for advanced psychology trainees in Medicare, which would expand the psychology workforce and increase access to mental and behavioral health services, particularly in rural communities. Senator Bennet has also championed mental health through his legislation to provide increased funding to strengthen the 988 suicide crisis lifeline, which passed in December of 2023. Senator Bennet sits on the Senate Finance Committee and has previously sat on the Senate Health, Labor, and Pensions Committee, both of which are key committees for issues impacting the practice of psychology.

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Senator Catherine Cortez Masto was awarded the Congressional Champion Award during the Spring 2023 Summit: Advocating to strengthen the psychology workforce and improve health equity for her leadership on legislation aimed at improving the integration of mental and behavioral health and physical health services. This work was instrumental in explicitly highlighting the primary care behavioral health model, allowing psychologists to be at the center of delivering care. Senator Cortez Masto is dedicated to expanding access to crisis care and other evidence-based interventions designed to help children and adults experiencing a mental health crisis and played a key role in securing funding for the 988 suicide crisis lifeline. She has also championed expanding behavioral health in schools by securing over $1 billion in the bipartisan Safer Communities Act and has worked to address workforce shortages to ensure that more psychologists, along with other health care professionals are able to serve in rural and underserved areas.

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Congressman Paul Tonko received the Congressional Champion award during the Spring 2022 Summit: Advancing Health Equity and Access to Psychological Services for his compassionate efforts to make mental and behavioral health care more accessible to all those who need it, his persistent leadership on mental health parity and mental health research, and his leadership on climate change. He is active in several Caucuses and Task Forces that have been very important for APA, including the Bipartisan Addiction and Mental Health Task Force and the Congressional Mental Health Caucus. Tonko has sponsored several bills the association has endorsed: the Medicaid BUMP Act, which would increase reimbursement for mental and behavioral health services via Medicaid;  the Medicaid Reentry Act that empowers states to restore access to addiction treatment through Medicaid for incarcerated individuals up to 30 days before their release, and the COVID Mental Health Research Act, which authorizes $500 million over five years for additional National Institutes of Health research on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health. Rep. Tonko has been a leader in support of parity in mental and behavioral health insurance benefits since his years in the New York state legislature. Tonko has also championed legislation related to climate change, with his chairmanship of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Environment and Climate Change, and membership on the Science Space and Technology and Natural Resources Committees. 

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Senator Ron Wyden received the Congressional Champion Award during the Spring 2022 Summit: Advancing Health Equity and Access to Psychological Services for his efforts to expand availability of mental health services and enable providers to better serve those in their communities who need mental health services. As Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Sen. Wyden is leading bipartisan efforts to improve the mental healthcare delivery system to meet the nation’s mental health needs. He introduced the CAHOOTS Act, which would allow state Medicaid programs to cover community-based mobile crisis intervention services for individuals experiencing a mental health or substance-use disorder crisis outside of a facility setting. Wyden has also recognized the importance of institutions such as schools in meeting the mental health needs of children and adolescents by championing bills like the Mental Health Services for Students Act (S. 1841), which provides support for school-based mental health services, including screening, treatment, and outreach programs. He continues to demonstrate his commitment to supporting the mental health needs of those in rural and underserved areas, for example with his steadfast support of the Excellence in Mental Health and Addiction Treatment Act, which expands availability of Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics in areas that have long struggled to provide them.

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Senator Mike Crapo received the Congressional Champion award during the Spring 2022 Summit: Advancing Health Equity and Access to Psychological Services for his tireless work on improving access to mental and behavioral health care services in rural America, as well as in tribal communities. In his capacity as Ranking Member of the Senate Finance Committee, Sen. Crapo has steered the Committee’s focus towards improving the long-neglected mental healthcare system in this country. The award was also granted in appreciation of Crapo’s support for the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act that created an easy-to-remember 9-8-8 dialing code for a national network of mental health crisis and suicide prevention services, a landmark initiative that we are pleased to see will finally go live later this summer. Finally, it recognizes Crapo’s persistent efforts to expand access to broadband connectivity in rural areas, which many patients receiving mental health services via telehealth rely on to access audio/video telehealth services.  

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Congresswoman Lauren Underwood received the Congressional Champion award during the Spring 2022 Summit: Advancing Health Equity and Access to Psychological Services for her commitment to improving health equity and expanding access to mental and behavioral health care services for all Americans and her work to address our nation’s gun violence epidemic. Rep. Underwood was commended for her determined efforts to expand and diversify the perinatal workforce, improve health outcomes for mothers of color, and improve care for incarcerated pregnant women. Underwood has also advocated to support the integration of primary and behavioral health care, fight climate change, ensure access to care for veterans, and provide evidence-based lethal means safety training to reduce suicide, particularly in younger populations. Finally, her office has worked closely with the association on vital legislation such as the Black Maternal Health Momnibus Act, the Child Suicide Prevention and Lethal Means Safety Act as well as numerous bills in the House Veterans Affairs committee.

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Senator Tina Smith received the Congressional Champion Award at the 2021 Advocacy Summit: Advancing the Role of Psychology in Education and Student Well-Being for her stewardship on school-based mental health care for students, including protections for populations at greater risk for mental health issues such as students learning English as a second language, students with disabilities, students of color, students from low income families, and LGBTQ+ students. She introduced the Mental Health Services for Students Act, which takes a public health approach to mental health care by building partnerships between local educational agencies, tribal schools, and community-based organizations. Smith has recognized the imperative to ensure that the challenges students face are addressed equitably as schools reopen for in-person learning. She is dedicated to health equity and has also been involved in other mental health initiatives such as expanding access to telehealth services in rural and underserved communities.

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Congressman David Trone received the Congressional Champion Award during the 2021 Advocacy Summit: Advancing the Role of Psychology in Education and Student Well-Being. Trone introduced the Comprehensive Mental Health in Schools Pilot Program Act, which would provide resources for low-income schools to develop comprehensive, school-wide support systems that would enable them to meaningfully address both their students’ learning and overall well-being, create a more equitable educational experience, and set students up for future success. He is among the foremost leaders in the House of Representatives on issues critical to the health and well-being of children and students, and a longstanding advocate for access to mental health services. A founding member of the bipartisan Addiction and Mental Health Task Force in the House, he also introduced the Tele-Mental Health Improvement Act, the Medicaid Bump Act, and the Medicaid Reentry Act, to expand access to psychological services.

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Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick received the Congressional Champion Award during the 2021 Advocacy Summit: Advancing the Role of Psychology in Education and Student Well-Being. Fitzpatrick introduced the Increasing Access to Mental Health in Schools Act, which would expand mental health services in low-income schools by supporting partnerships between institutions of higher education and local education agencies to increase the number of school-based mental health professionals, including psychologists. Fitzpatrick has been a leader in improving access to quality mental health services and comprehensive education. He also recognizes the importance of providing mental health care in rural and underserved communities, and has been a proponent of more widespread access to mental and behavioral health services. A bipartisan leader, he is an original cosponsor of the Tele-Mental Health Improvement Act, the Medicaid Bump Act, and the Medicaid Reentry Act, to expand access to psychological services. Fitzpatrick is also a founding member of the bipartisan Addiction and Mental Health Task Force in the House..

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Congresswoman Johnson received the Congressional Champion Award at the 2021 Summit: Stand for Science to Advance Psychology for her longstanding efforts to preserve the Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate at the National Science Foundation (NSF) from funding cuts; protect NSF’s merit review process from political challenges and increase opportunities in STEM for women and communities of color. She has worked to provide for the health and well-being of the American people by expanding access to the most advanced, efficient, and affordable healthcare possible, including by co-sponsoring the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act (H.R. 2646).

As the first African American and woman to chair the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, Congresswoman Johnson is also committed to expanding access to STEM education for all populations, especially for women and researchers of color. She recently introduced the Supporting Early-Career Researchers Act (H.R. 144/S.37) to establish early career fellowships at NSF. The legislation would authorize $250 million for the creation of a new two-year fellowship program at NSF for early career researchers, including psychological scientists, to help mitigate the adverse effects from COVID-19 on the U.S. research workforce.

Congresswoman Watson Coleman received the Congressional Champion Award during the 2021 Advocacy Summit on Telehealth and Health Equity for leadership in improving access to health and mental health services for all Americans. Equity, diversity, and inclusion principles are grounded in all her work, which has focused on environmental violations, criminal justice reform, and ensuring that bias and discrimination is pushed out of accessing everyday needs. In March of 2021, she worked to reintroduce the Pursuing Equity in Mental Health Act in the House of Representatives, which addresses disparities in access, care, and the study of mental health issues among people of color. APA Services commends her for introducing this bill that responds to the suicide emergency among Black youth, as well as so much of her past work, such as introducing bills that allow women to enroll in, or change, their health coverage if they become pregnant; amend the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to prohibit discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity in “public accommodations,” such as schools, recreational facilities and retail stores; and even make the purchase of diapers tax free.

Senator Angus King holds a strong commitment to bridging the partisan divide. Senator King regularly hosts dinners with colleagues from both sides of the aisle, at which political talk is banned and the sole focus is on getting to know one another. Senator King worked to gain enactment of legislation to improve access to effective opioid use disorder treatment, expand funding for broadband services, and is an original cosponsor of the Equality Act to protect LGBTQ Americans. Senator King joined Senator Todd Young (R-IN) in introducing the Mental and Behavioral Health Connectivity Act (S.3999). This legislation would have permanently expanded Medicare coverage of telehealth services—beyond the COVID-19 public health emergency—to make it possible for Medicare beneficiaries to receive care in their homes and to receive audio-only services for mental and behavioral health care. Senators King and Young also joined their Senate colleague Tim Kaine, from Virginia, in introducing the Dr. Lorna Breen Health Care Provider Protection Act, which provides funding training, educational and health promotion programs, and a CDC-led mental health awareness campaign aimed at health care professionals. It was enacted as part of the American Rescue Plan Act. He was presented the APA Services Congressional Champion Award during the 2021 Advocacy Summit on Telehealth and Health Equity.