APA Letter on the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act (S.2634) to Leaders of the U.S. House of Representatives

September 9, 2004

The Honorable J. Dennis Hastert
Speaker
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

The Honorable Tom DeLay
Majority Leader
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

The Honorable Nancy Pelosi
Democratic Leader
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, D.C. 20515

Dear Speaker Hastert, Majority Leader DeLay, and Democratic Leader Pelosi:

On behalf of the 150,000 members and affiliates of the American Psychological Association (APA), I am writing to thank you for the quick consideration and bipartisan approval of the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act (S.2634). Although this legislation represents significant progress towards addressing much needed mental and behavioral health services for our nation’s youth, there is much more to be done.

As you know, this critically important legislation incorporates some of the provisions from the APA-supported Campus Care and Counseling Act (H.R.3593) and the Youth Suicide Early Intervention and Prevention Expansion Act (H.R. 4557). Introduced in the House of Representatives last year by Representatives Danny K. Davis and Tom Osborne, the Campus Care and Counseling Act authorizes funds for competitive grants to centers on college campuses that provide mental and behavioral health services to students in an effort to increase and improve services on those campuses.

The needs in colleges across the nation are undeniably great, and the stakes for our nation are high. Depression among college freshmen has nearly doubled in recent years. Mental and behavioral health problems, of all degrees of severity, also impair the academic achievement of college students.

The Youth Suicide Early Intervention and Expansion Act (H.R. 4557), introduced in the House by Representative Bart Gordon, would support and coordinate further the efforts already being undertaken by several states, localities, and the federal government in the area of youth suicide and early intervention and prevention. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, suicide is the third leading cause of death in youth aged 10 to 24. About every two hours, a young person under the age of 25 commits suicide. Tragically, more than 4,000 young lives are lost each year to suicide. In fact, more teenagers and young adults die from suicide than from cancer, heart disease, AIDS, birth defects, stroke, pneumonia, influenza, and chronic disease, combined.

We are pleased that this vital legislation was debated yesterday in the House, a day that marked the anniversary of the tragic suicide of Senator Gordon Smith’s son, Garrett. Passage of the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act represents an important first step in establishing critical and much-needed support for mental and behavioral health services to students on college campuses. Further, it is significant in that it creates and funds an organized effort at the federal and state levels to prevent this national tragedy.

However, several provisions in the House-approved legislation--namely, the parental consent requirements and a limit on the ability to offer direct services under the Campus Care and Counseling provisions--would undermine the fundamental premise that the bill aims to address. In addition, APA remains concerned about the unintended consequences that may result from provisions regarding child medication and the 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. We look forward to working with the Congress to address these concerns and to ensure that this bill becomes law.

Once again, we thank you for your leadership on this very important legislation that, in the words of Senator Smith, “represents an important milestone in our country’s battle against mental health problems, and specifically of youth suicide.”

Sincerely,

Norman B. Anderson, Ph.D.
Chief Executive Officer
American Psychological Association

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