The APA Services Incorporated (APASI) Congressional Champion Award is given to members of Congress who have prominently championed the goals of the discipline and profession of psychology. These individuals have shown extraordinary leadership, including taking legislative action to advance the field of psychology.
Representative Eddie Bernice Johnson (D-TX)
Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson is committed to expanding access to STEM education for all populations, especially for women and researchers of color, and protecting and advancing the behavioral and social sciences at the National Science Foundation. She has dedicated her career to public service and the development and advancement of science to benefit society.
Her work in the sciences began as the first female African American Chief Psychiatric Nurse at the V.A. Hospital in Dallas, where she saw firsthand the plight of individuals with mental illnesses and their families. She later served on the Texas State House and Senate, then as the Science, Space and Technology Committee’s first African American and first female Ranking Member. She then became the first African American and woman to chair the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.
She has fought to preserve the Social Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate at NSF from funding cuts; protected NSF’s merit review process from political challenges; maintained NSF’s scientific independence from partisan interference; and increased opportunities in STEM for women and communities of color. She has worked to provide for the health and wellbeing of the American people by advocating for 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).
Representative Bonnie Watson-Coleman (D-NJ)
Representative Bonnie Watson Coleman is a leader who is committed to improving access to health and mental health care services for all Americans and has dedicated her entire career to public service advocating for equitable treatment of all people. 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, which addresses disparities in access, care, and the study of mental health issues among people of color. APASI 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 (I-ME)
Maine 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 Young in introducing S. 3999, the Mental and Behavioral Health Connectivity Act. 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.
Senator Todd Young (R-IN)
Senator Young has a keen understanding of the importance of mental health care, and he has partnered with multiple colleagues on initiatives over the past year to address the mental health impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. He is a member of the Senate Finance Committee, and was selected by his colleagues to be the ranking minority member of the Subcommittee on Social Security, Pensions, and Family Policy. The subcommittee deals with issues related to the Social Security Administration, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, Department of Labor retirement and pension issues, Unemployment Insurance, and programs within the Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families. Senator Young joined Senator King in introducing S. 3999, the Mental and Behavioral Health Connectivity Act. 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 Young and King 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.
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