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06/18/2020

Members participate in APA virtual meet and greet with Congressman Balderson

OPPA members, Alan Levy, MD and Nita Bhatt, MD, representing psychiatry, participated in a virtual meet in greet, "Conversations with Congressman Balderson and Ohio Physicians" on June 16. The event was requested by Congressman Balderson to learn more about issues of importance to physicians in Ohio and to build relationships.

Drs. Bhatt and Levy discussed the importance of telehealth beyond when the current public health declaration is lifted and suggested that Congress make the current waiver authority passed by Congress for telehealth permanent for at least a year, along with a study, to continue to collect data to understand the impact of these changes on telehealth.

There was discussion about APA strongly supporting H.R. 3165, the Mental Health Parity Compliance Act, a bipartisan bill introduced by Congresswoman Katie Porter (D-CA) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) that would ensure that health insurance plans are transparent and accountable when providing equal coverage for mental and physical health. This bill is extremely important to ensure needed access to MH / SUD services especially given the current COVID-19 crisis, opioid epidemic and the spike in suicides over the last decade. Drs. Bhatt and Levy strongly encouraged Congressman Balderson to cosponsor H.R. 3125.

Drs. Bhatt and Levy are part of APA's Congressional Advocacy Network (CAN), APA's political grassroots network, where member advocates connect with members of Congress to ensure that legislation at the Federal level is informed by constituent psychiatrists.

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