Mental health, FDA bills advance in House

The House Energy and Commerce Health Subcommittee yesterday voted unanimously to advance to the full committee the Restoring Hope for Mental Health and Well-being Act (H.R. 7666), bipartisan legislation that would reauthorize over 30 programs set to expire in September that support mental health care, prevention, education and workforce training. The bill includes AHA-supported legislation that would reauthorize and expand a program that addresses maternal depression to include mental health and substance use disorders, and require the Health and Human Services Secretary to maintain a national hotline to provide mental health and substance use disorder resources to pregnant and postpartum women and their families. Among other provisions, the bill would establish a Behavioral Health Crisis Coordinating Office within the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and require the Health and Human Services Secretary to publish best practices for a crisis response continuum of care.

The subcommittee also unanimously voted to advance legislation (H.R. 7667) to reauthorize the Food and Drug Administration’s user fee programs, which provide funding for the agency to review drugs, devices and biologics. Among other provisions, the bill would include drugs on the FDA’s shortages list in a pilot program to designate advanced manufacturing technologies.