ACA Helps Welcome New SAMHSA Head

The American Counseling Association was invited as representatives of the counseling profession to meet and welcome Pamela Hyde, the new Administrator of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), on the evening of December 10 in Washington D.C. David Kaplan, ACA Chief Professional Officer, and Scott Barstow, ACA Director of Public Policy and Legislation, attended. SAMHSA is the lead federal agency providing grant programs and contracts for mental health services and substance abuse prevention and treatment in the United States and has an annual budget of over $3 billion. ACA has worked with SAMHSA on such issues as substance abuse preparedness for professional counselors and facilitating the deployment of professional counselors to national disasters.

Ms. Hyde was introduced to the audience by Kathleen Sebelius, the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Secretary Sebelius pointed out that SAMHSA speaks to the needs of over 8 million Americans who face mental illness or substance abuse, and noted that the importance - and workload – of SAMHSA will only grow with the passage of health care reform. Ms. Hyde then gave an overview of her priorities for SAMHSA. She committed the agency to being champions of wellness and prevention. She also stated that SAMHSA will increase its focus on addressing cultural differences and ameliorating poverty’s effect on mental health and substance abuse.

ACA applauds Administrator Hyde’s appointment and her interest in wellness, prevention, multiculturalism, and poverty. We look forward to working with her and SAMHSA on projects that address these critical issues. The webcast with Ms. Hyde’s comments about her priorities for SAMHSA will be available after mid December on the SAMHSA website at www.samhsa.gov