Calling on Congress to fund programs key to psychology and mental health

On December 4, 2023, over 150 psychologists and psychology advocates met with members of Congress and staff as part of the APA Services Virtual Advocacy Summit: Federal Funding Matters: Calling on Congress to Fund Programs Key to Psychology and Mental Health. These advocates, of whom more than 60 were new to advocacy, came from 45 states, as well as Washington, D.C., and represented 18 APA divisions and 40 State, Provincial, and Territorial Psychological Associations. Following an advocacy training on December 3, summit participants met with their Congressional representatives to urge them to provide maximum funding levels in fiscal year (FY) 2024 for key programs supporting the psychology workforce, school- and campus-based mental health, psychological research, and suicide prevention.

In his opening remarks, APA CEO Arthur C. Evans Jr., PhD, thanked attendees for their participation and “commitment to ensuring that the discipline and profession [of psychology] are engaging with critical policy issues that impact not just us as psychologists, but everyone in our society,” and highlighted that “when we collaborate and bring together our federal and grassroots efforts, we make significant strides toward our mutual goals.”

APA President Thema Bryant, PhD, then emphasized the importance of advocacy to “address the multiple crises facing not only our profession, but our country, including the youth mental health crisis and the ongoing mental health workforce shortage.” She added that to meet these challenges, “we need federal funding for programs that support research and clinical training for our next generation of psychologists, expand access to services and prevention programs for marginalized communities, children in schools, servicemembers and veterans, and the public at large.”

In preparation for their Hill meetings, summit participants received comprehensive advocacy training. APA Senior Director for Congressional and Federal Relations and Education Policy Lead Kenneth Polishchuk, MA, MPP, presented the legislative request to urge Congress to fund key psychology programs at the highest possible level in FY 2024 to protect investments made to the psychology workforce, school- and campus-based mental health, research, and suicide prevention over the past several years. Matt Dennis, of CRD Associates, then gave an overview of the appropriations process and what Congress still needs to accomplish to fund the government in FY 2024.

APA Manager of Congressional and Federal Relations Raegina Likewise, MA, briefed participants on key programs that support the psychology workforce including the Graduate Psychology Education Program and the Minority Fellowship Program, as well as programs supporting school- and campus-based mental health, including the Mental Health Service Professionals Demonstration Grant Program, School Based Mental Health Services Grant Program, and the Garrett Lee Smith Campus Suicide Prevention Grant Program. APA Director for Congressional and Federal Relations Krysta Jones then gave an overview of several programs supporting psychological research including those within the National Institutes of Health and National Science Foundation, as well as programs to support critical suicide prevention efforts including the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, Mobile Mental Health Crisis Response Grants, the CDC’s Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Program, and suicide prevention programs within the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Following the issue briefings, APA Director of Grassroots Engagement Doris Parfaite-Claude, MPP, led a presentation on how summit attendees can communicate effectively with members of Congress, including how to build rapport and how to write and deliver a pitch. APA Deputy Chief of Public Policy and Engagement Stefanie Reeves, CAE, ASAE, then educated participants on how to use social media effectively to follow up with offices following their meetings and promote their advocacy and APA’s priorities during the summit.

During her welcoming remarks, Bryant awarded a presidential citation to Mary Fernandes, PhD, for her extraordinary leadership efforts and advocacy on behalf of graduate psychology students, professional psychology, and improving the mental health of veterans and marginalized populations. In her many advocacy roles, she has influenced both state and federal policy decisions, including the adoption of PSYPACT in Georgia, Medicare reimbursement for psychologists, student debt relief, telehealth expansion and health equity, and worked to involve others in psychology grassroots advocacy efforts. In her role as the 2022 chair of the American Psychological Association of Graduate Students, she provided a thoughtful and inspiring voice on the APA Board of Directors, Council of Representatives, and Council Leadership Team. She continues to advocate for psychologists as part of the Advocacy Special Interest Group for the Association of VA Psychology Leaders.

Following the advocacy training, APA Chief of Professional Practice Jared Skillings, PhD, awarded the APA Services Advocacy Award to Kirk Stucky, PsyD, ABPP. This award is given to extraordinary psychologists who go above and beyond in their work to support the field, discipline, or practice of psychology through advocacy. Stucky was honored for his tireless efforts over the past two decades to advocate for postdoctoral psychology funding from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). In 2002, he made history as the first psychologist in the nation to secure funding from CMS for a hospital-based postdoctoral psychology training program, and in 2008, he coauthored an article to assist other postdoctoral training programs in securing CMS funding. Over time, his efforts helped secure millions of dollars from CMS for postdoctoral training in the state of Michigan.

APA Senior Director of Congressional and Federal Relations and Practice Lead Scott Barstow awarded the Lifetime Advocacy Award to Wayne Smith, of the Potomac Group, for his efforts to promote psychology and APA advocacy over the course of the past 30 years. As president and CEO of the Potomac Group, Wayne began representing APA in 1992, during President Clinton’s campaign for comprehensive health care coverage, and he has successfully fought for Medicare and equity issues for psychologists, managed care regulation, on payment-related issues, and more.

APA Services would like to extend our congratulations to all our awardees and a thank you for all the work you do to advocate for psychology.

For more information, contact: Kenneth Polishchuk or Angela Sharpe.