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The American Mental Health Counselors Association is pleased to announce that Representative Ted Strickland (D-OH) has agreed to serve as Honorary Chair of Mental Health Counseling Week, to be held May 4 through-10, 2003, during National Mental Health Month.
Mental Health Counseling Week is designated each year to educate parents and families, communities, schools, health policymakers and insurers, health professionals, and employers about the importance of good mental health and the profession of mental health counseling.
Rep. Strickland, a member of the U.S. House of Representatives since 1992, has long been an advocate for the mentally ill. He has demonstrated his commitment by working in Congress to enact mental health parity legislation. Strickland also supports legislation pushed by AMHCA to include licensed mental health counselors as providers for the Medicare program.
Professionally, Strickland has served as a minister, a college professor, and a clinical psychologist. He graduated from the University of Kentucky with a doctoral degree in Counseling Psychology and was a consulting psychologist at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility. Rep. Strickland also holds a Master of Divinity degree from Asbury Theological Seminary and has served as an assistant professor at Shawnee State University.
In a letter to mental health counselors, Rep. Strickland said, "As you know firsthand, mental health counselors are critical providers in our health care safety net. I salute you for your devotion to helping others and know you will continue to do your good work of improving the lives of Americans from all walks of life. With your continued dedication to this important work, I am confident the outlook for those with a mental illness only will continue to improve."
"AMHCA applauds Rep. Strickland for his work on behalf of those who suffer from mental illness, and for his commitment to working in Congress to make mental health services more widely available to our nation's citizens," said AMHCA President Bill Wheeler. "We are honored to have Rep. Strickland as Honorary Chair of Mental Health Counseling Week and look forward to working with him in the future."
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