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Bucshon praises Helping Families Act as Hamilton Center honors him

Tribune-Star (Terre Haute, IN) - 7/27/2016

July 27--Honored by Hamilton Center Inc. on Tuesday for his co-sponsorship of the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act, U.S. Rep. Larry Bucshon told a story about how mental health affected someone he knew years ago, even before he became a heart surgeon and a congressman.

"She was a friend," he told a room full of Hamilton Center employees and guests. "Her mother had a history of schizophrenia. She subsequently got married and had a couple children. Then in her mid to late 20s, she ended up on the street with schizophrenia herself. Her husband divorced her ... and a lot of us tried to do some things to help her."

Bucshon, who grew up in Kincaid, Ill., thought her mother's condition could have been recognized sooner and used to predict his friend's schizophrenia before it developed.

"That's a barrier to [mental health] care, a lack of understanding," he pointed out.

The Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act, described by Hamilton Center as "a comprehensive overhaul of the nation's mental health treatment system," passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a 422-2 vote July 6. Bucshon, R-Newburgh, hopes the act (labeled H.R. 2646) will get through the Senate in the next few months so it can be signed by President Obama before the end of 2016.

"I'm really excited about that," Bucshon told a room full of Hamilton Center employees and guests. "That is going to happen."

Bucshon worked with Rep. Tim Murphy, a Republican and a psychologist from Pennsylvania, and others to get the bill through the House.

"I understand the importance of moving forward on improving what we do at the federal level as it relates to severe mental illness," Bucshon said. "We need to get everyone to understand that there doesn't have to be a stigma associated with mental illness. I tell people all the time, it's just like if you have appendicitis, you have appendicitis. If you have mental health issues, you have mental health issues. They're both medical issues that need to be properly addressed."

Bucshon said one improvement that should be noticed if the bill becomes law is expanding access to patient beds "for people who have acute mental illness crises."

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Following the recognition ceremony, Bucshon told the Tribune-Star that the act is "a step in the right direction to try to reform some of the federally funded mental health programs."

"I think everybody is recognizing that we need to get rid of the stigma of mental illness and realize that it is a disease, just like any other medical problem," he elaborated, "and then effectively treat these patients so that they can live productive, happy lives. This legislation is a step in that direction."

Hamilton Center chief executive officer Mel Burks, who learned about Bucshon's involvement in passing the act through the House two or three weeks ago, said that was when he decided the congressman deserved recognition in Terre Haute.

"I sent out an email to our leadership team that said, 'We have to bring him here to let him know that we who serve mental health ... appreciate the battle he's been fighting," Burks told the room full of supporters.

"This act is starting to open up the door for people to understand that those who are experiencing mental illness matter. Their lives matter."

In addition to discussing Congress' work on the Helping Families in Mental Health Crisis Act, medical assistance for U.S. military veterans and treatment for abuse and addiction of legally prescribed opioids, Bucshon mentioned that a child recently asked him about the upcoming presidential election.

Bucshon's reply: "The country is 240 years old and we're still the best country, to my mind, in the world. I have full confidence in the American people and that's all I'll say about it. We'll see what happens."

Bucshon, who was first voted into Congress in 2010, will seek his seek his fourth term in the same 2016 November general election.

David Hughes can be reached at 812-231-4224 or at david.hughes@tribstar.com. Follow David on Twitter @ TribStarDavid.

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