On September 9, the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate passed the final version of S. 2634, the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act, w hich contains provisions from the APA developed Campus Care and Counseling Act (S. 2215/H.R. 3593). As you know, the Campus Care and Counseling Act was introduced in both the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate by a bi-partisan coalition of Members (see previous updates).

The final version that passed overwhelmingly in both legislative bodies is significantly different from the version that first passed the U.S. Senate in July of this year. While the final bill does not contain all the important provisions (e.g. direct services and hiring mental and behavioral health professionals) that were included in the original Campus Care and Counseling Act (or in the Senate passed version of the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act) it does represent an important first step in establishing critical and needed support for mental and behavioral health services to students on college campuses. Further, it acknowledges the significant toll that mental and behavioral health problems take on a student's ability to succeed in college. A majority of the funds authorized in the bill are dedicated to statewide Youth Suicide Early Intervention and Prevention Strategies.

The legislation was the subject of an interesting debate and discussion on both the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate. The legislation passed by a recorded vote of 352-64 in the House and by unanimous consent in the U.S. Senate. According to House, Senate and White House staff, the President intends to sign the legislation.

Click here for additional information regarding the House and Senate debates.

While we are pleased to see our proposal a step closer to being enacted into law and pleased to witness the extraordinary advocacy efforts of APA members from across the country pay off, we acknowledge that the entire bill could stand some improvement.

Areas of concern in both the “Youth Suicide Early Intervention and Prevention Strategies” and the “Mental and Behavioral Health Services on Campus” sections include: the omission of direct services and training for mental and behavioral health professionals under the grant and the lack of explicit authority to hire qualified staff in centers on campus that provide mental and behavioral health services; restrictive parental consent language; child medication language; and restrictive language regarding abortion services. Addressing these concerns is critical in the effort to adequately meet the needs of students that are suffering mental and behavioral health problems.

Both the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration provisions and the Higher Education Act are slated for reauthorization consideration next year. That being the case, we may have an opportunity to make changes to the legislation in hopes of more comprehensively addressing the real and documented needs of students on college campuses today. We look forward to working with the Congress to address these concerns and to ensure that this bill becomes law and we look forward to hearing your comments about the legislation. As many of you were instrumental in drafting the initial legislation, we will want to hear from you about how to improve the new version next year.

Click here for a copy of the legislation as passed.


The following provisions are included in the amended version of S. 2634, the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act:

• Under the Findings section, the bill maintains the important statements about the mental and behavioral health needs of students that exist on college campuses.
  
  
• The legislation authorizes the creation of a new “research, training, and technical assistance center” that will provide information, training and technical assistance to “states, political subdivisions of a state, federally recognized Indian tribes, tribal organization, institutions of higher education, public organizations or private nonprofit organizations” for a range of services and support related to youth suicide. Entities eligible to apply for the $3 million dollars authorized for the additional technical assistance center include, “public or nonprofit private entities.”
  
  
• The bill includes a new section, 520E, Youth Suicide Early Intervention and Prevention Strategies which authorizes a new statewide grant program. Some funds within the grant program are reserved to “provide grants to institutions of higher education to coordinate the implementation of State-sponsored statewide or tribal youth suicide early intervention or prevention strategies, which may include prevention, screening, early intervention, assessment, treatment, management, and education with respect to mental and behavioral health problems that can lead to school failure, such as depression, substance abuse, and suicide attempts by students enrolled at the institution.” Funds reserved for this purpose are set at 5% of the 85% of funds reserved for direct services under the program.
  
  
• Finally, the bill establishes a new section, 520E-2, on Mental and Behavioral Health services on Campus. This section authorizes competitive grants to IHEs to enhance services for students with mental and behavioral health problems that can lead to school failure, such as depression, substance abuse and suicide attempts so that students will successfully complete their studies. Funds must be used for any of the following activities (but are limited to these activities): 1) Educational seminars; 2) The operation of hotlines; 3) Preparation of informational material; 4) Preparation of educational materials for families of students to increase awareness of potential mental and behavioral health issues of students enrolled at the institution of higher education; 5) Training programs for students and campus personnel to respond effectively to students with mental and behavioral health problems that can lead to school failure, such as depression, substance abuse and suicide attempts; OR 6) The creation of a networking infrastructure to link colleges and universities that do not have mental health services with health care providers trained to identify mental and behavioral health issues.
  
  
• Eligible grant recipients for this new section 520E-2 include college counseling centers; college and university psychological service centers; mental health centers; psychology training clinics; and institutions of higher education supported, evidence-based, mental health and substance abuse programs.
  

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