"My hope is that this morning's hearing is the next step in discussing the need for reform so that we can come together in finalizing policies that improve care for our most vulnerable citizens."
"For 20 years, I have seen politicians over-promise and underfund, and as I do so, it is the patient that suffers."
"I think if you look at Medical Advantage's special needs programs, most of those folks are probably not managed by primary care in an urban setting."
"In the end, the best chance for SGR reform to work its way to the President's desk is bipartisanship."
"We should see this and provide reform that puts us on a financially sustainable path, incentivizing quality health care."
"I am a doc, too, not a psychiatrist--but one of my concerns is that some of the SAMHSA money is going for folks who advocate doing without medications."
"It seems a luxury to be unfocused in how we are implementing programs."
"Clearly, we are in a time of budgetary constraints. You referred to it multiple times, but on the other hand, that is the new reality."
"Why out of 288 programs will we only have four that seem to directly pertain to what we could all agree would be severe mental illness?"
"True compliance costs, and if there is a reluctance to form that advisory committee or at least have some ad hoc committee which comes to agreement."
"It seems like if this is being done with an EPA grant, we should be able to see those data as should anybody who would want to look at that methodology."