[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 86 (Friday, May 17, 2024)]
[House]
[Page H3344]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    MENTAL HEALTH CARE IS HEALTHCARE

  (Ms. SALINAS asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. SALINAS. Madam Speaker, I rise today to share a simple truth: 
Mental health care is healthcare. We have to start treating it as such 
because these challenges are more common than people may think.
  Several members of my own family have struggled with mental health 
challenges, so I know from personal experience how hard it is to watch 
the people you love suffer and not be able to help them.
  It is why I have introduced several bills that would put an end to 
the stigma, bring down costs, and expand access through peer support 
programs and telehealth to ensure more Oregonians and Americans get the 
care they need.
  May is also Mental Health Awareness Month, but raising awareness 
alone doesn't go far enough. We need bipartisan action on this issue. 
It is the only way we can put an end to the mental health and substance 
use crisis in America.
  As co-chair of the Mental Health Caucus, I am working across the 
aisle to find consensus and get more policies passed that will actually 
help people who are struggling, people like my family members and 
probably yours, too.
  I invite every single one of my colleagues, regardless of party 
affiliation, to join me in this fight. My door is always open, and I am 
open to forging solutions together.

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