While Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D. NV) is the main Senator everyone is talking about today, I'd like to talk about the other Senator Reed. I haven't written anything about Senator Jack Reed (D. RI) because he's safe for re-election. It's Rhode Island people. But I did want to give him a special shout out for introducing legislation with Senator Lisa Murkowski (R. AK) to improve mental health services and prevent teenage suicides:
http://politicalnews.me/...=
WASHINGTON, DC -- In an effort to improve mental health services for young people and prevent youth suicides, U.S. Senators Jack Reed (D-RI) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced the Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act Reauthorization.
The reauthorization will help improve access to counseling for at-risk teens and promote the development of statewide suicide early intervention and prevention strategies. It will also increase federal funding for competitive grants to help states, colleges, universities, and tribes improve mental and behavioral health counseling services. Overall, the bill authorizes the federal government to award up to $44 million annually to help states and non-profit institutions prevent youth suicide.
Suicide is now the second leading cause of death for adolescents and young adults age 10 to 24 up from the third leading cause of death in this population just a few years ago and results in 4,800 lives lost each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Additionally, the CDC reports that 157,000 young adults in this age group are treated for self-inflicted injuries annually, often as the result of a failed suicide attempt. - Political News, 1/24/13
Reed echoed Senator Al Franken's (D. MN) call for more mental health funding and for more access to mental health experts in public schools:
"The horrific mass shootings we've seen at schools across the country shows that more work must be done to address the mental and behavioral health of children and young adults before they hurt themselves and others. Many young people have a treatable mental illnesses, but they don't get the help they need. This bill provides critical resources for prevention and outreach programs to help reach at-risk youth before it is too late,"said Senator Jack Reed, who noted that in Rhode Island there are more than twice as many suicides as homicides. "Schools, colleges, and universities are on the front lines of preventing youth suicide and this bill will help provide them with additional resources to diagnose and treat our young people, as well as improve access to care by supporting the training of more qualified mental health professionals." - Political News, 1/24/13
Murkoski also stated that suicide prevention is a serious issue in Alaska:
"Far too many young Alaskan lives are lost in the epidemic of youth suicide, and the statistics are worst in our rural areas," said Senator Lisa Murkowski. "When our young people are in despair and get to a certain point, they make a mistaken decision to take their own lives. We owe it to them and to our nation's future to cast the net upstream and stop them along the way, listen to them and help them overcome their frustrations in a constructive way to stop the cycle and provide a better example to their peers." - Political News, 1/24/13
The Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act Reauthorization is named after former Senator Gordon Smith's (R. OR) son who committed suicide back in 2003 while attending Utah Valley University. Here's what the bill entails:
The Suicide Prevention Resource Center
Ensures grantees receive appropriate information, training, and technical assistance on:
Developing and implementing cost-effective early intervention programs;
Identifying and understanding the causes and associated risk factors for suicide;
Surveying suicidal behavior and nonfatal suicide attempts; and
Evaluating and disseminating outcomes and best practices of mental health and substance use disorder services.
The reauthorization would extend the current $5 million authorization annually through fiscal year (FY) 2018.
Youth Suicide Intervention and Prevention Strategy Grants to States and Tribes
Provides States and Tribes/Tribal organizations the authorization to develop and implement:
Early intervention, assessment, and treatment services;
Information and awareness campaigns;
Evaluations of intervention and prevention practices and strategies;
Training programs for providers and child care professionals;
The reauthorization would increase the authorization from $30 million to $32 million annually through FY18.
Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Services and Outreach on Campus
Enables colleges and universities to prevent youth suicide by authorizing:
Educational and outreach activities on suicide prevention;
The development and implementation of evidence-based and emerging best practices;
The provision of mental health and substance use disorder services, including prevention, promotion of mental health, and voluntary screening; and
The employment and training of personnel.
The reauthorization would increase the authorization from $5 million to $7 million annually through FY18.
The bill has been cosponsored by U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Susan Collins (R-ME), Tom Udall (D-NM), Patty Murray (D-WA), Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Christopher Coons (D-DE), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), and Debbie Stabenow (D-MI).
I for one am happy to see Senators Reed and Murkowski introduce reauthorizing this act. One of my good friends brother committed suicide years ago due to depression so I staunchly support reauthorizing this act and making access to mental health and suicide prevention more accessible. So thank you Senators.
For the Record, Reed is also on board with gun control, the other major factor in tragedies like the Sandy Hook School shooting and the Aurora movie theater shooting:
http://www.jamestownpress.com/...
"I support common sense and practical steps to help reduce gun violence," said U.S. Sen. Jack Reed following the president's announcement. "The president can't do this all on his own. Congress needs to work on a bipartisan basis to pass common-sense laws to keep our communities safe."
Rhode Island's senior senator said that reasonable limitations on military assault weapons, highcapacity clips and armor-piercing bullets are fully consistent with the Second Amendment. In a 2008 majority opinion, Supreme Court Justice Antony Scalia said the right to bear arms is not unlimited. - The Jamestown Press, 1/24/13
Senator Reed is also a co-sponsor of Senator Frank R. Lautenberg's (D. NJ) legislation to close the gun show loophole:
http://www.ahherald.com/...
WASHINGTON, DC - U.S. Senator Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) announced today that he has reintroduced his legislation to close the gun show loophole - ÃÂa significant loophole in U.S. law that allows guns to be sold, even to criminals and the severely mentally ill, by unlicensed sellers at gun shows without conducting background checks. Lautenberg's bill would require that background checks be conducted on all firearms sales at gun shows, even sales by private parties. Last week, President Obama called for legislation to require background checks on all guns sold - ÃÂincluding all guns sold at gun shows as part of his gun violence prevention recommendations.
"Criminals, terrorists, the mentally ill and other dangerous people shouldn't be able to walk into a gun show and walk out with guns and assault weapons, no questions asked. Closing the gun show loophole is a simple step that we can take to increase gun safety and prevent dangerous weapons from getting into the wrong hands," Lautenberg said. "An overwhelming majority of Americans want to stop unchecked sales at gun shows, and this bill would do just that. I have beaten the gun lobby by getting my legislation to close the gun show loophole through the Senate before, and I am confident we can do it again."- Atlantic Highlands Herald, 1/24/13
I applaud Reed for addressing both of these major issues.