Title: A resolution honoring Rosalynn Smith Carter's 50 years of mental health advocacy.
Policy area: Health

Summary:
This resolution recognizes the work of former First Lady Rosalynn Smith Carter on behalf of those affected by mental health disorders and substance use disorders.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 726 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
S. RES. 726

  Honoring Rosalynn Smith Carter's 50 years of mental health advocacy.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 29, 2020

 Mr. Perdue (for himself, Mrs. Loeffler, and Mr. Murphy) submitted the 
   following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the 
                               Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
  Honoring Rosalynn Smith Carter's 50 years of mental health advocacy.

Whereas Rosalynn Smith Carter, since 1970, when her husband, future President of 
        the United States Jimmy Carter, was a candidate for Governor of Georgia, 
        has been a leading advocate for raising awareness about mental health 
        and the ability of people with mental health disorders to recover and 
        live happy and fulfilling lives;
Whereas Mrs. Carter emerged as a national driving force for mental health when, 
        during Jimmy Carter's presidential administration, Mrs. Carter became 
        the active honorary chair of the President's Commission on Mental 
        Health;
Whereas the work of President Carter's Commission on Mental Health resulted in 
        passage of the Mental Health Systems Act of 1980, which offered reforms 
        to publicly funded mental health programs;
Whereas, in 1982, President and Mrs. Carter founded The Carter Center, which is 
        dedicated to improving the quality of life for people in the United 
        States and in the developing world through programs that promote peace 
        and health;
Whereas, from 1985 to 2016, Mrs. Carter hosted the annual Rosalynn Carter 
        Symposium on Mental Health Policy, bringing together national leaders in 
        the mental health community to discuss a specific topic each year, 
        including promoting access to appropriate and affordable behavioral 
        health care services, improving the quality of such services, and 
        reducing the stigma and isolation associated with mental health 
        disorders and substance use disorders;
Whereas The Carter Center's Mental Health Program, established in 1990 and 
        continuing under the leadership and guidance of Mrs. Carter, strives to 
        build consensus in order to effect positive change in mental health and 
        substance use policy and systems, with a focus on vulnerable 
        populations, including children and the elderly;
Whereas, in 1996, Mrs. Carter established the Rosalynn Carter Fellowships for 
        Mental Health Journalism, which have provided training and support to 
        more than 220 journalists in the United States and abroad to report 
        accurately and sensitively about and reduce the stigma surrounding 
        mental health disorders, mental health care, mental health law and 
        policy, and related issues;
Whereas Mrs. Carter, in 2008, played a key role in supporting the passage of the 
        Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction 
        Equity Act, which helps ensure that mental health disorders and 
        substance use disorders are covered by insurance at parity with other 
        illnesses;
Whereas Mrs. Carter, who has long been a champion of the physical and mental 
        health, strength, and resilience of family caregivers, established the 
        Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving in 1987, where she continues to 
        serve as President of the Board of Directors;
Whereas, throughout Mrs. Carter's 50 years of advocacy for mental health, she 
        has been an effective champion for the elimination of stigma and 
        discrimination against people with mental health disorders, which are 
        among the most common health conditions around the world; and
Whereas, at 93 years of age, Mrs. Carter continues her devoted work to improving 
        the lives of those affected by mental health disorders and substance use 
        disorders in the United States and around the world: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) hereby expresses its profound gratitude, on behalf of 
        the people of the United States, to Rosalynn Smith Carter for 
        her lifetime of accomplishments and commitment on behalf of 
        those affected by mental health disorders and substance use 
        disorders;
            (2) recognizes, praises, and appreciates the improvements 
        in wellbeing and the betterment of society Mrs. Carter's 
        contributions have engendered; and
            (3) encourages all people of the United States to follow 
        Mrs. Carter's example of putting compassion into action through 
        a lifetime of service to humanity.
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