NMHA Addresses President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health; Faenza Urges Commission to View Mental Health as Top Priority

7/19/2002

From: Chris Condayan of the National Mental Health Association, 703-838-7528; E-mail: ccondayan@nmha.org; Web site: www.nmha.org

ALEXANDRIA, Va., July 19 -- Michael Faenza, president and CEO of the National Mental Health Association, testified today before the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health and strongly urged the commission to take a public health approach that focuses on entire communities and fosters cross-system collaboration.

"To be truly effective, the mental health system must work in collaboration with other health and human service systems and focus on the mental health of the entire community over the lifespan," said Faenza.

Faenza urged the commission to consider the societal and human cost of systems that focus only on the most serious illnesses and make no provision for health promotion, preventive services, screening, and early intervention to address disorders, which, if left untreated, become more serious illnesses.

Faenza also asked the commission to send strong messages about critically needed reforms, including the need to:

-- Protect and expand resources for community-based mental health services

-- Enact comprehensive federal mental health insurance parity legislation

-- Address the special needs of children and support policies that facilitate collaboration among child serving systems

-- Focus on consumer choice and recovery, and ensure access to a range of effective treatments and services

-- Address the service needs of people with co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders

-- Facilitate development, implementation and funding of culturally competent services and systems

-- Learn from model programs such as Wraparound Milwaukee, the Village Integrated Services Agency in Los Angeles, Calif., and the Safe Schools/Healthy Students programs

Faenza also urged the commission to support the development and implementation of a long-term, comprehensive, prevention-based mental health infrastructure that not only responds in the immediate phase following a crisis, but also addresses the intermediate and long-term mental health impact arising from a disaster such as the September 11 attacks.

"We look forward to working with the president's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health to address the many critical mental health needs facing our nation," said Faenza.

The National Mental Health Association is the country's oldest and largest non-profit organization addressing all aspects of mental health and mental illness. With more than 340 affiliates nationwide, NMHA works to improve the mental health of all Americans through advocacy, education, research and service.