Aug 17, 2022
The President signed the reconciliation legislation yesterday after a tortured journey through the legislative process. As you likely know, several US Senators had veto power over what was included in the final product. Since this unusual legislative process was used, there were also strict requirements that it address only budgetary issues. That made including policy changes difficult.
NAATP joined the field in supporting additional policy changes in this bill, including several which would have moved us closer to enforcement of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (Parity). Unfortunately, those items were not in the final version of the bill. NAATP will continue efforts to encourage more oversight on this priority issue.
Thank you to our members who contacted their Senators to ask that our priorities be included. Those efforts were not wasted. The Senate is working on a comprehensive SUD bill for this year. Your messages helped establish Parity enforcement as a priority for many constituents around the Country and will assist us in pushing for those items in the next legislative opportunity.
The health care items that were included in the massive bill can be found here: S.Con.Res.5. They are contained in sub-title B and C.
Thank you for your support. It does make a difference.
