Nancy Johnson acknowledges in public that managed care has devastated mental health. Then it's time for the big plenary session, the event that made the six o'clock news. We have to pass through another set of metal detectors and a bunch of guys in suits and sunglasses who look like they were the Georgetown defensive line, because the President himself is here for this. This is where the Clinton-Gore campaign style really looks effective. Mr. and Mrs. Clinton, Mr. and Mrs. Gore enter and take seats on a long dais where furniture is arranged in three conversation groups.
Tipper takes over.
She's so excited she's literally hopping with energy. But she gets serious. She reminds us all of the effects of the pervasive stigma about mental illness-one of the chief effects being that it keeps people from getting treatment. No one talks about it, everyone pretends it isn't there, but depression alone will affect 19 million adult Americans this year, and its impact is increased because people fail to get help in time. She got therapy and medication, and it worked.