ACA News

Suicides in VA parking lots spotlight veterans? mental health care

A total of 19 suicides occurred at Veterans Administration facilities, including seven in VA hospital parking lots, from October 2017 to November 2018. The Washington Post examined the unfolding tragedy in a feature article titled “The Parking ...

Support New Legislation That Would Provide Medicare Reimbursement to Counselors

On Jan. 31, Senator John Barrasso (R-WY), Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Representative Mike Thompson (D-CA) and Representative John Katko (R-NY) introduced the Mental Health Access Improvement Act of 2019. This measure would include Licensed ...

Fighting suicide: The importance of hope

In a new CT Online article, American Counseling Association Chief Professional Officer David Kaplan discusses the importance of hope in the fight against suicide?and provides a look at a range of strategies and statistics focused on this devastating ...

More counselors needed for children in U.S. border detention facilities, ACA CEO Says

American Counseling Association Chief Executive Officer Richard Yep recently sent a letter to Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, urging HHS to increase the number of mental health counselors at influx care facilities in the United ...

Application process open: Two student-loan debt-forgiveness programs for LPCs

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is accepting applications through Feb. 21 for two student-loan repayment-assistance programs for behavioral health clinicians, including licensed professional counselors (LPCs).

Application Process Announced: New SUD Student-Loan-Forgiveness Program, Existing Student Loan-Forgiveness Program for Health-Care Workers

UPDATE: The deadline for applying to this program has been changed from February 21, 2019 to February 28, 2019. More information here . The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) is accepting applications through Feb. 21 for a new ...

Federal Report on School Safety Released

The Federal Commission on School Safety, established after the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting at Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., released a 180-page final report on Dec. 18 containing 93 recommendations for improving school safety nationwide, ...

ACA Takes Action Toward Interstate Licensure Portability

This fall, the American Counseling Association took a major step in the direction of interstate licensure portability.  On Oct. 17, the ACA Governing Council approved the initial endorsement and funding of a professional occupation ...

The Costs of Mental Illness In Treating Physical Illness

The effects of mental health on physical health are well known. An Oxford University review of the literature shows that the average reduction in life expectancy is between seven to eleven years for someone with recurrent depression, nine to twenty ...

Should We Have a Three Digit Suicide Prevention Hotline? Have Your Say.

The National Hotline Improvement Act was signed into law August 2018.  The law requires the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Federal Communications ...

No Threat of Government Shutdown for Agencies that Oversee Counseling Initiatives

Many agencies in the federal government will run out of money on Dec. 21 if Congress and the president can’t agree on a new budget—but the agencies that fund and oversee counseling initiatives are not among them. Earlier, in the fall, ...

Short Term Insurance Plans Morph Into Long Term Plans With Limited Mental Health Coverage

Short term insurance plans have been providing people with temporary insurance coverage for decades.  Historically, they have been transitional policies that are not required to provide mental health coverage or coverage for preexisting ...

How the Outcomes of the Midterm Elections Will Affect Professional Counselors

Healthcare was a prominent issue, probably the most prominent issue, for voters. A November 2 Gallup Poll found that 80 percent of respondents said healthcare would be extremely or very important in their vote for Congress this year, followed by the ...

Healthcare Is On The Ballot November 6. So Are Many Other Important Issues.

The November elections are just days away and mental healthcare for all Americans could hang in the balance. Healthcare has been one of the top issues during this campaign cycle across the country, particularly the provision that includes coverage for ...

ACA Statement Regarding The Mass Shooting at Tree of Life Synagogue

We are deeply saddened by the horrific anti-Semitic violence carried out at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday, October 27. We grieve for those who were directly impacted.

School Counselors Use Technology to Help Make Schools Safer for Kids

Digital citizenship training, behavioral threat assessment programs and state tip lines are some of the technology-focused tools currently in use to help ensure safe and healthy learning environments in our nation’s schools, according to ...

President Signs Bill Offering Student-Loan Debt Forgiveness for Substance-Use-Treatment Staff

President Donald Trump signed a bill on October 24th that addresses the opioid crisis and provides forgiveness for student loans of up to $250,000 for substance-use-treatment professionals. The measure, H.R. 6, is titled the SUPPORT for Patients and ...

The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act: Ten Years Later

This October marks the tenth anniversary of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act (MHPAEA), one of the signal achievements in the effort to expand access to mental health treatment.  While both counselors and patients have benefitted ...

Call for Disaster Mental Health Volunteers for Hurricane Michael

The American Red Cross has asked ACA and their other mental health partners to issue a call for disaster mental health volunteers who are not currently in the Red Cross system to respond to those affected by Hurricane Michael.

Congress Sends Bill With New Programs and Funding to Fight Opioids to President

On October 3rd Congress sent legislation to the President that addresses the opioid epidemic in a number of important ways.  The SUPPORT For Patients and Communities Act, H.R. 6, includes many new programs and revises existing ones that ...