WASHINGTON, DC - House Energy and Commerce Committee Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Chairman Tim Murphy (R-PA) and Ranking Member Diana DeGette (D-CO) today sent a letter to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) as part of ongoing bipartisan oversight of the federal mental health system.
Murphy and DeGette explain that the committee’s continued oversight seeks to ensure “that federal dollars devoted to mental health are reaching the millions of Americans with serious mental illness (SMI) and helping them to obtain the most effective care." The subcommittee held a hearing in February to review concerns about the federal mental health system as outlined in a report from the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office. Today’s letter seeks to better understand SAMHSA’s review and management of evidence-based programs.
Murphy and DeGette write, “Since 1997, SAMHSA has sponsored a National Registry of Evidence-based Programs and Practices (NREPP), which is a searchable online registry of programs and services that are considered by SAMHSA to be evidence-based. According to SAMHSA, the purpose of NREPP is to help the public learn more about available evidence-based programs and practices and determine which of these may best meet their needs. The committee would like to better understand how SAMHSA manages NREPP."
Read the complete letter online HERE.
