ACA News

ACA Hosts Congressional Briefing on Epidemic of Opioid Addiction

On Tuesday, April 4, 2017, ACA hosted a two-hour Congressional briefing at the U.S. Capitol Visitors Center. The briefing explored the effects of opioid use disorder and the unique roles Licensed Professional Counselors (LPCs) play in helping ...

ACA Launches 2017 Counseling Awareness Month 2017 Campaign

"Between stimulus and response there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.? ? Viktor Frankl

Repealing and Replacing Obamacare Becomes Retreating and Regrouping

The House bill to repeal and replace Obamacare could not attract enough votes to pass. Its future viability, and the mental health benefits it provides, are up to the insurance companies and the Administration.

ACA Media Spotlight: Helping Teen Boys Express Emotions

ACA member Dr. Dana Kasper recently shared helpful tips with Huffington Post Canada.

ACA Urges Members to Rally Against American Health Care Act

"Tell your Congressional members that it would be unacceptable to pass any healthcare legislation that would not require insurance companies to cover mental health services!"

Video: House Committee Discusses Mental Health Care Requirement in Medicaid

A House Committee considering the bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act discusses the requirement for mental health care coverage going forward. It will be up to the States to decide.

Supreme Court Sends Transgender Rights in Schools Case Back Down

The Supreme Court returned a case involving transgender students and school bathrooms back to the Fourth Circuit Court after the new Administration withdrew guidance on the subject provided by the Obama Administration. The guidance from the new ...

House Begins to Consider a Bill to Repeal and Replace the Affordable Care Act

The House bill ends subsidies for low income people to buy insurance in the ACA market, and cuts Medicaid funding. It replaces those with tax credits for low and some middle income people that seem unlikely to be as generous on average. Many members ...

Senate Begins to Consider Mental Health Funding for FY2018

The subcommittee that funds mental health programs heard testimony on a range of issues as it prepares to write the spending bill for next year.

Congressional Resolution Discontinues Policy of Preventing Some With Mental Illness From Obtaining Firearms

Social Security recipients who required a designated payee due to mental impairment were being added to the national background check system.

Iowa ACA Members Help Defeat Legislation That Would Harm Counseling Profession

The proposed bill would have eliminated the licensure process for a number of professions including counseling, instead requiring anyone who wanted to be considered a counselor to simply register with the State Department of Public Health.

ACAF Grant Brings Play Therapy Room to an Orphanage

Youngsters at the St. Aloysius Orphanage in Cincinnati, Ohio, now have access to a play therapy room, thanks to funds from the American Counseling Association Foundation's (ACAF) Growing Happy and Confident Kids (GHCK) program grant.

ACA Supports Foster Kids Through Comfort Kits

ACA staffers recently formed an assembly line in a conference room to pack 40 duffel bags with an array of items designed to offer comfort to children entering foster care.

ACA Media Spotlight: Softening the Blow of Divorce for Kids

David Kaplan, ACA past president and chief professional officer, recently shared tips for parents with Thrive Global.

Winners of 2017 ACA National Awards Announced

Each year, the American Counseling Association recognizes and celebrates the achievements of counseling professionals who have distinguished themselves professionally, as well as through service to others.

2017 Graduate Student Essay Competitions Winners Announced

ACA student members were competing for prizes in two essay competitions: the Future School Counselors Essay Competition (sponsored by the Roland and Dorothy Ross Trust) and the Graduate Student Essay Competition (sponsored by Gerald and Marianne Corey ...

2016-2017 Ethics Competition Winners Announced

Winners were identified from the top three Master?s teams and the top three Doctoral teams, with one honorable mention in each academic level. Members of the winning team will be recognized at the National Awards Ceremony at the ACA 2017 Conference & ...

Prognosis for the Affordable Care Act

As Congress begins to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, it finds that one of those is easier than the other.

More States Considering Bans on Conversion Therapy

Five states and the District of Columbia have laws prohibiting conversion therapy. Five more are considering similar bills introduced this month.

ACA and Cities Thrive Coalition Urge Congressional Leadership Not to Dismantle the Affordable Care Act

The American Counseling Association has joined with over 100 mayors and other partners in the Cities Thrive Coalition in urging leaders in Congress to ?build upon, not tear down, the progress that has been made to our behavioral health system through ...