OFFICIALS LEGISLATION INTEREST GROUPS PUBLIC STATEMENTS COMMITTEES VETOES

National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month

Floor Speech

Date: July 10, 2024
Location: Washington, DC

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Ms. PLASKETT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to acknowledge National Minority Mental Health Awareness Month.

More than one in five adults in the United States live with mental illness. We must ensure that community practitioners, from mental health workers, social workers, crisis managers, and law enforcement are educated on implicit biases that they may have and the social determinants of health that negatively impact patients of color.

While people of all ages and backgrounds experience mental disorders, minorities face significant treatment disparities. Cultural humility training has advanced healthcare equity, but we must do better.

In my area in the Caribbean, communities affected by hurricanes, most recently Grenada, St. Vincent, the Grenadines, and Jamaica, experience a different level of mental strain, leading to mental health crises in families among adults and children.

I urge my colleagues to better address the tremendous mental health disparities and barriers to treatment for minority communities.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT


Source
arrow_upward