Bipartisan Momentum Grows for Behavioral Health, Social Determinants, and Vaccine Policy Changes

As debate over big-ticket infrastructure and budget reconciliation bills unfolds, the Senate Finance and House Energy and Commerce Committees are charting more bipartisan paths on behavioral health, social determinants of health, and vaccine access priorities.
 
At a June 15 hearing, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Oregon), Ranking Member Crapo (R-Idaho), and committee members of both parties signaled interest in crafting mental health legislation, potentially incorporating expansions of telemental health and the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) Demonstration. Additional primary care-behavioral health integration policy changes and investments may be on the table in this developing conversation.
 
In the House, the Energy and Commerce Committee advanced several individual bills on July 21, including measures addressing vaccine policy as well as Medicare and Medicaid initiatives to address social determinants of health.