Political Quotes

“I am honored to join my colleague from Oregon, Senator Ron Wyden, to introduce the Seniors Mental Health Access Improvement Act. For over a decade, Senator Wyden has been a strong voice advocating for rural specific health care policies here in the United States Senate. I am proud to join him as we fight to ensure Medicare patients living in rural and frontier states have access to and choice of mental health professionals. The Seniors Mental Health Access Improvement Act would permit Marriage and Family Therapists and Licensed Professional Counselors to bill Medicare directly for services. These providers would receive 75 percent of the psychiatrist and psychologist rate for the same services. I want my colleagues to know that this legislation does not expand covered Medicare services. It would simply give Medicare patients living in isolated, frontier States like Wyoming more mental health provider choices. Today, approximately 75 percent of the over 3,000 nationally designated Mental Health Professional Shortage Areas are located in rural areas. Over half of all rural counties have no mental health services of any kind. Frontier counties have even more drastic numbers as 95 percent do not have a psychiatrist, 68 percent do not have a psychologist and 78 percent do not have a social worker. Virtually all of Wyoming is designated a mental health professional shortage area.…”