Mental Healthcare is Healthcare

I care about the mental health of every Wisconsinite and have the distinct honor of serving as the Ranking Member on the Committee on Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Prevention. My service on this committee is dedicated to the mental health needs of Wisconsin veterans, teachers, healthcare workers, children, families, young adults, seniors, and more. My work addressing mental health is ongoing, and your feedback is valuable. Please reach out with your concerns, expertise, feedback, and ideas. Our state needs to act, and act swiftly, to better care for the mental health of Wisconsinites.

Mental Healthcare is Healthcare

I authored the Mental Healthcare is Healthcare legislation– 11 bills to increase access to mental health services across the state of Wisconsin, including expanding access to veterans, and in schools–from kindergarten through university. And, in order to expand access, we must expand the workforce, so this legislation also addresses the mental healthcare professional shortage. And, because everyone deserves access to affordable mental healthcare, one of the bills requires insurance to cover mental health visits. You can read about these bills here, here, and here.

Huge Accomplishment!

Social Worker Licensure Compact

I have fought for years for Wisconsin to join the Social Worker Licensure Compact. It has finally passed the legislature and Governor Evers signed it into law! This is a huge win for mental health access, and workforce expansion in Wisconsin!

Recent wins in state budget, and bills that passed recently

As the Ranking Member on the Committee on Mental Health and Substance Use Disorder Prevention, I fought for a wide range of mental healthcare programs to be funded. In our last state budget we funded 24/7 virtual mental health services for UW students and funded the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Support hotline. We recently passed a bill to build a new mental health facility, and continue to work on ensuring every Wisconsinite has access to mental healthcare.

New Solutions

We know that solving our national mental health crisis is going to take new and creative solutions. That is why I am proud to have supported a number of innovative initiatives in the legislature to best serve those impacted by mental health.

Protecting Kids Online

I will fight for your families as if they are my own. The impact of social media on mental health is felt by everybody, but it is especially challenging for young people. Our children face increased exposure to explicit content, increased social isolation, and a direct link between social media use and poor mental health outcomes.

That is why I am proud to have co-sponsored the bipartisan “Protecting Our Kids” legislative package. These bills establish positions in our state government to protect our kids online.

There’s more to do. I have also cosponsored additional bills to require mental health warnings on social media, require digital platforms to build privacy and safety into their products to protect children, and increase funding for parental education on healthy social media practices.

You can read more about my work on my legislative website mental healthcare here.