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Campus Care and Counseling Act Passes Unanimously in U.S. Senate
Bill Renamed in Honor of Garrett Lee Smith,
Son of Senator Gordon Smith
The Campus Care and Counseling Act, developed and initiated by the American Psychological Association, and introduced in both the House and the Senate by Representatives Danny K. Davis (D-IL) and Tom Osborne (R-NE) and Senators Jack Reed (D-RI), Mike DeWine (R-OH), Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Hillary Clinton (D-NY) passed the United States Senate on July 8th.
The bill was repackaged and renamed the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act (S. 2634) after the son of Senator Gordon Smith of Oregon. It was spearheaded by Senators Gordon Smith, Christopher Dodd, Jack Reed and Mike DeWine. The legislation passed by unanimous consent in the U.S. Senate.
Senator Gordon Smith has taken on a very public role in discussing the death of his son, Garrett. Garrett Smith committed suicide last year, and in recent weeks the Senator has made it his personal mission to see that both the Campus Care and Counseling Act (S2215/HR 3593) and the Youth Suicide Prevention bills (S2175/HR 4557) become law this year. He and other Senators took to the floor of the U.S. Senate today and told very personal stories about how suicide has affected their lives -- highlighting the importance of mental and behavioral health services.
The other bill sponsors and their amazing staff have worked hand in hand to secure Senate passage of this important legislation and have done so at a furiously fast pace. House consideration is less certain at this time. However, House and Senate staff are in communication with the intention of moving it quickly through the House, as well.
Originally drafted as an amendment to the Higher Education Act, the program will now reside with SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration). In terms of structure, the program will remain largely the same.
 Click here for a copy of the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act [PDF 73K]
Much credit goes to those APA members and others who lent both their expertise and energy in calling their Senators and Representative in Congress to alert them to this important legislation. From writing letters to testifying before Senate committees, APA members were front and center in educating Congress about the needs that exist on college campuses.
Most importantly, passage of this legislation would not have been possible without the leadership of members and staff of the United States Senate and U.S. House of Representatives.
Senator Smith, during his very personal, emotional and moving statement on the Senate floor stated that this legislation "represents an important milestone in our country’s battle against mental health problems, and specifically of youth suicide.” Senator Jack Reed, the first in the Senate to express interest in the APA proposal and chief sponsor of the original legislation stated, "Counseling Centers on college campuses are too important to the well-being of students and their families to be shortchanged. This legislation will support the mental and behavioral counseling services that are so critical to students.''
Click here to read the Senate floor debate on this legislation [PDF 44K]
Our most sincere thanks go out to the following Members of Congress and their outstanding legislative staff:
U.S. Senate
Senator Gordon Smith (R-OR) and Catherine Finley
Senator Jack Reed (D-RI) and Lisa German Foster, Elyse Wasch
Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH) and Lindsay Morris
Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Catherine Brown
Senator Chris Dodd (D-CT) and Jeff Regan
Senator Judd Gregg (R-NH) and Kathy French
U.S. House of Representatives:
Representative Danny K. Davis (D-IL) and Jennifer Luciano
Representative Tom Osborne (R-NE) and Erin Duncan
Learn more about the Campus Care and Counseling Act
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