WASHINGTON, D.C., June 8, 2021 – As part of its Federal Advocacy Conference, members of the American Psychiatric Association will be participating in a virtual fly-in this Thursday to speak with their federal representatives and senators about policies and resources to increase access to needed mental health and substance use disorder services. The fly-in comes as COVID-19 continues to impact rates of anxiety, depression and overdoses in the United States.

WHO: 125 member psychiatrists and APA District Branch leaders covering 33 states will participate in more than 150 meetings.

WHAT: Their conversations will cover APA’s legislative priorities, such as mental health equity, mental health and substance use disorder parity, telehealth, graduate medical education and the Collaborative Care model. WHEN/WHERE: All the visits will take place virtually on Thursday, June 10, 2021.

NOTE: Earlier in the week during the Federal Advocacy Conference training session, APA conferred the highest award it gives a public servant to Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ) for her work as a champion of mental health equity and youth suicide prevention.

MORE INFORMATION: Contact APA at [email protected] or 202-459-9732. Follow @APAPsychiatric for updates. Learn more about APA’s advocacy on the state and federal level here.

American Psychiatric Association

The American Psychiatric Association, founded in 1844, is the oldest medical association in the country. The APA is also the largest psychiatric association in the world with more than 37,400 physician members specializing in the diagnosis, treatment, prevention and research of mental illnesses. APA’s vision is to ensure access to quality psychiatric diagnosis and treatment. For more information please visit www.psychiatry.org.