Yesterday, the full Senate Appropriations Committee approved a spending bill for the Departments of Labor, Health and Human Services and Education (Labor-HHS-ED) that would boost funding for the Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Program (ESSCP) to $52 million for next year. This is a $3.4 million increase over the current year, and the highest funding level yet for the program! Read more...

For the first time since 2000, Congress has passed a budget resolution in an election year. The Senate passed a fiscal year 2009 budget resolution (S. Con. Res. 70) 48-45 on June 4, which was passed by the House the next day on a vote of 214–210. Read more...

In an effort to decrease entitlement spending, the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) recently issued regulations that would curtail many Medicaid services and further shift costs to the states. Read more...

Last December Congress left for the year having passed a few nominal reforms to the Medicare program.  One of those reforms postponed a 10% cut in physician reimbursement for six months.  However, a lack of time and available money prevented the Congress from passing any substantial reforms to many of Medicare’s antiquated policies. Read more...

The American Psychiatric Association released a study on April 30, 2008 that examined the state of mental health care in the military health care system. The study found that stigma remains a major barrier to adequate mental health care for both servicemembers and their families, especially for military spouses. Read more...

On Thursday, May 8th, the House Mental Health Caucus is sponsoring a Congressional Briefing to focus on the value of school-based mental health programs as key components of a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) reauthorization package. Read more...

The U.S. Department of Education published in the March 24, 2008, Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) regarding the Family and Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA). Read more...

In an effort to increase funding for the Elementary and Secondary School Counseling Program (ESSCP), 32 members of the U.S. House of Representatives (28 Democrats and 4 Republicans) have signed and sent a letter to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education. Read more...