June 14, 1976
Page 17912
COMMITTEE ON THE MENTAL HEALTH AND ILLNESS OF THE ELDERLY
Mr. MUSKIE. Mr. President, I would like to express my appreciation to Senator SCHWEIKER for his assistance in bringing to the Senate floor my amendment to provide an additional year for the completion of the study called for by Congress from the Committee on Mental Health and Illness of the Elderly.
Last July, when Congress overrode the President's veto of the health revenue sharing bill, the authorization for a nine-member committee was enacted into law. That law, Public Law 94-63, directed that the committee submit a report to Congress within 1 year its study of the adequacy of existing mental health programs and its recommendations on:
First. Appropriate care of the aged in mental institutions;
Second. Future needs for mental facilities, manpower, research, and training, to better meet mental health care needs of the elderly;
Third. Proposals for implementing the recommendations of the 1971 White House Conference on Aging concerning mental health care.
The authorization for this committee expires on July 29, 1976. Unfortunately, it will be impossible for this mandate to be met because the Secretary of HEW has yet to name the members of the committee.
The purpose of the amendment before us is to grant a 1-year extension — until July 29, 1977 — for the Committee on Mental Health and Illness of the Elderly to perform its functions.
As the sponsor of the legislation that led to the establishment of this committee, I am deeply disturbed by this delay.
Mr. President, we are faced with a choice of permitting this authorization to expire without hearing the recommendations of this committee, or extending its life to compensate for the inattention of those most responsible in Government for addressing the needs of our elderly.
The committee I proposed was not intended to be a new bureaucracy creating more red tape. Nor was it an entity of Government which would outlive its usefulness. The Committee on Mental Health and Illness of the Elderly was to report within 1 year. But nothing yet has been done.
Although the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare has been remiss in failing to appoint members of the committee, Secretary David Mathews, in a letter seeking to excuse the delay, recognizes the significance of the committee's mandate. He writes:
I am fully aware that the findings and recommendations of this Committee will be extremely important in helping us develop better ways to meet the needs of the elderly.
The committee's report takes on added meaning because widespread confusion and contradictions now affect public policy concerning mental health care of the elderly.
Many elderly are warehoused in institutions when they could be returned to the community if proper services were available. Some are dumped into communities without adequate facilities and resources to assist them. Still others remain in their homes and apartments, cut off from the help they desperately need.
Mr. President, although I wish this amendment were not necessary, I am pleased to understand that the managers of the pending business are willing to accept my amendment.
And I am gratified that Secretary Mathews recently has promised "that the members will be appointed very shortly."
I realize that mental health and illnessis not always a comfortable subject for us to deal with, but our Nation can no longer turn its back on the serious mental health problems of older Americans. The Committee on Mental Health and Illness of the Elderly can provide an important first step for the development of a national policy in this area.
Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the full text of Secretary Mathew's letter of May 25, 1976, be included in the RECORD at this point.
There being no objection, the better was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:
THE SECRETARY OF HEALTH,
EDUCATION, AND WELFARE,
Washington, D.C.,
May 25, 1976.
Hon. EDMUND MUSKIE,
Chairman,
Subcommittee on Health of the Elderly,
Special Committee on Aging,
U.S. Senate,
Washington, D.C.
DEAR SENATOR MUSKIE: Thank you for your letter of April 29 concerning appointments to the Committee on Mental Health and Illness of the Elderly.
As you may know, there are numerous administrative, legal and financial details to be worked out before any new committee can be established. Following this, the responsible Agency must then solicit and review recommendations from a wide variety of sources in order to locate the best qualified individuals to serve on these committees. The selection of candidates is very time consuming and often causes delays in the staffing process.
Officials at the Alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration, which is responsible for the Committee on Mental Health and Illness of the Eldlerly, did forward their nominations to me recently, but I felt that more minority representation was needed and requested additional recommendations. These will be forthcoming in the next few days.
I am fully aware that the findings and recommendations of this Committee will be extremely important in helping us develop better ways to meet the needs of the elderly, and I can assure you that the members will be appointed very shortly.
Cordially,
DAVID MATHEWS
Secretary.