Wednesday, November 9, 2016

APA Pledges to Work With Trump Administration to Advance Mental Health Reform


The election yesterday of Donald Trump as the next president of the United States represented not just a change in administrations but perhaps broader changes in the nation’s health care system, as well.

APA today reiterated its commitment to engage with the Trump administration in a bipartisan manner to advance psychiatry’s objectives.

“We welcome the opportunity to work with President-Elect Trump and the Republican Party on improving mental health in this country,” said APA President Maria A. Oquendo, M.D., Ph.D., in a press statement. “Mental health is a bipartisan issue that affects millions of Americans from all walks of life, and we pledge to work with President-Elect Trump’s administration to ensure these Americans get the care they need.”

APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A., agreed. He pointed to APA’s work with the current Congress as an example of its commitment to building relationships across party lines to improve access to mental health care and bring other needed reforms to the country’s mental health system.

“Our issue is one that must reach across party lines for it to be successful,” said APA CEO and Medical Director Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A. “We have worked in a bipartisan manner with Rep. Tim Murphy, a Republican from Pennsylvania, who has spearheaded mental health reform in Congress for the last three years, as well as Rep. Eddie Bernice Johnson, a Democrat from Texas. We also worked with Sen. Chris Murphy, a Democrat from Connecticut, and Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Republican from Louisiana, to promote mental health reform in the Senate.”