Dear Chairman Harkin, Chairman Kingston, Ranking Member Moran, and Ranking Member DeLauro:
We write to you out of concern that the number of pediatric mental health specialists, pediatric medical
subspecialists, and pediatric surgical specialists today is inadequate to meet the growing health needs of
America’s children. We respectfully request that the Pediatric Subspecialty Loan Repayment program,
Section 775 of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 295f), be recognized as a critical national priority
and strongly urge Congress to provide it with $5 million in funding in the FY 2014 Labor-HHS-Education
Appropriations bill.
The all too recent tragic events in Newtown, Connecticut, underscore the need to refocus attention on
pediatric mental health. Mental illness is like any other disease in that the earlier it is identified and
treated, the better the outcomes. However, when left untreated, these disorders can lead to serious
consequences for children, their families, and our communities. Effective treatments are available, but
sadly there is an average delay of 8 to 10 years between the onset of symptoms and intervention. The
longer the lag time is between symptom onset and treatment, the more difficult and costly mental
illness is to treat and the greater the burden becomes on our public health system. Unfortunately,
however, there is a severe shortage of pediatric mental health care providers across the country.
Without adequate availability of professionals trained to take care of youth with complex mental health
problems, we cannot ensure that those who need care most have the ability to receive it.
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