Boston Bar Applauds Children’s Mental Health Legislation

BOSTON –Boston Bar Association President Kathy Weinman today issued the following statement in anticipation of Governor Deval Patrick tomorrow signing into law S-2518, An Act Relative to Children’s Mental Health:

Although this has been a long time coming, it is extremely gratifying to see that the recommendations outlined in a report issued by the Boston Bar Association’s Task Force on Children’s Mental Health in 2002 will become law.  This bill will overhaul the children’s mental healthcare system by strengthening early detection and treatment of children’s mental health issues; improving access to services and providing better coordination of care; tracking children and outcomes by creating a systematic data collection process to better understand existing services and permit stakeholders to make informed decisions.

Tomorrow we will celebrate with many partners, including 102 legislators, a coalition of 90 organizations including Children’s Hospital Boston, and Dr. JudyAnn Bigby, Secretary of the Executive Office of Health and Human Services.