Parity Expands Veterans’ Behavioral Health Access
By Jeannie Campbell, Executive Vice President, National Council for Behavioral Health
Nov 11, 2013—As we give thanks to our veterans today, we have cause to celebrate. The Obama administration passed a robust final parity rule just last week, to implement the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008.
As former Congressman Patrick Kennedy, who sponsored the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, said, “This issuance of this rule has been highly anticipated by those in the mental health community, and will be particularly significant for our returning veterans – many of whom carry brain injuries sustained in battle and have been coming home to unequal care. People call Traumatic Brain Injury and Post-Traumatic Stress ‘invisible wounds,’ but they demand a visible response. With Veterans Day just around the corner, we need parity for our patriots.”
As more veterans take advantage of parity and come to community behavioral health centers for help, how can you gear up to serve? Consider three immediate steps:
Let veterans and families in your community know where to go for help. Offer Mental Health First Aid classes for veterans and family members in your community. Mental Health First Aid increases understanding of the signs and symptoms of mental illnesses, encourages help-seeking behaviors, tells people where they can go for help, and opens the doors of your center to those in need of services.
Train staff to be culturally competent. With each person you serve, you know that you need to meet them where they are, need to understand their values, and the context in which they are experiencing and addressing behavioral health challenges. The military is its own culture as well. The National Council, in partnership with the Center for Deployment Psychology and Relias Learning offers an online training program to increase clinical and cultural competencies in serving veterans. Learn more about the Veterans Behavioral Health Certificate.
Learn from other community behavioral health providers who treat veterans. Veterans on the Road Home, the field guide published by the National Council, describes the unique characteristics of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the resulting physical, mental, economic, and social effects on veterans and their families. The book presents detailed case studies of community behavioral healthcare providers and associations with expertise in serving veterans and their families with a focus on community collaboration and lessons learned. The book is available on the National Council Store.