Wyden, Crapo Welcome Input on Addressing the Mental Health Care Crisis

321 Responses from Groups and Hundreds More from Individuals Will Assist Committee as it Works to Address Unmet Mental Health Care Needs

Washington, D.C. – Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden, D-Ore., and Finance Committee Ranking Member Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, today released submissions responding to the committee’s bipartisan initiative to address barriers to mental health care.

“Far too frequently, Americans struggle to access timely, affordable, high-quality behaviorial health care and substance use disorder services— a crisis which has been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Wyden and Crapo wrote. “This input from members of the mental health care community will assist the committee in its work to come. We look forward to working with our colleagues on the committee as we develop bipartisan solutions to remove barriers to mental health care in America.”

The Finance Committee held a hearing on May 12, 2021, to examine an array of strategies aimed at improving mental health and addiction services. On August 5, 2021, Wyden and Crapo announced the launch of a bipartisan effort to develop legislation addressing barriers to mental health care. To carry out this effort, Wyden and Crapo wrote a letter to key stakeholders across the health care continuum seeking input to help Congress better understand and address the mental health crisis.

Responses from stakeholder groups can be found here.

Responses from individuals can be found here. They have been anonymized out of respect for the individuals’ privacy.

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