True or False? What Happens on Capitol Hill, Stays on Capitol Hill

From our friends at the National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare

Answer: False.

Congress’ policy decisions impact behavioral health at every level – and at Hill Day 2012, you can impact Congressional policy by meeting with your legislators.

Join the National Council's 8th Annual Public Policy Institute and Hill Day on June 25-26, 2012 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Washington, D.C. Each year at Hill Day, hundreds of behavioral health providers, administrators, board members, consumers, and community stakeholders come to Washington for a full day of sessions and workshops on federal behavioral health policy, followed by visits with their elected officials on Capitol Hill to advocate for our field's priorities.

Hear it from the people who were there at Hill Day 2011:

• “Hill Day works, Hill Day is important, and Hill Day is fun!”– Jeff Walter, President & CEO, Rushford Center (CT)
   
• “Consistently, the National Council gives great access to the people who make decisions and shape policy in Congress and the federal agencies.” – Hill Day 2011 attendee

Also see it in the major legislative successes Hill Day helped achieve last year:

1.     $41 million funding increase for the Mental Health Block Grant in the 2012 budget, the first increase in over 10 years

2.     $21 million funding increase for the Substance Abuse Prevention & Treatment Block Grant in the 2012 budget

3.     14 new Senate cosponsors for legislation to extend federal health IT incentive payments to behavioral health providers and organizations

4.     Commitments from Representatives to cosponsor the health IT legislation when it is introduced in the House

5.     Preservation of Medicaid against a series of threats to the program during deficit reduction negotiations

Hill Day 2011 attendees also got to hear the latest political and budget news from our best-yet lineup of speakers, including Jim VandeHei of POLITICO and Pamela Hyde, SAMHSA Administrator. Watch the slideshow of photos of Hill Day 2011:

Don’t miss out on Hill Day 2012 – click here to save the date in your calendar today.

Hill Day 2012 will be held June 25-26 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Washington, D.C.   Registration will open on January 23. Click here for more details on registration, the days' events and speakers, and schedule.

Have questions? Contact the National Council's Rebecca Farley.

This material originally appeared in a National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare newsletter. It is reprinted here with permission.