HHS appoints public members to federal mental health committee

The Department of Health and Human Services yesterday appointed 14 public members to a committee created by the 21st Century Cures Act to better coordinate federal efforts to address serious mental illness and emotional disturbance. They are: Linda Beeber, nursing professor at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill; Ron Bruno, founding board member for CIT International; Clayton Chau, M.D., regional executive medical director for the Institute for Mental Health and Wellness at St. Joseph-Hoag Health; David Covington, CEO of RI International; Maryann Davis, research associate professor in the psychiatry department at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center; Pete Earley, author; Paul Emrich, under secretary of family and mental health for the Chickasaw Nation; Mary Giliberti, CEO of the National Alliance on Mental Illness; Elena Kravitz, peer support provider and manager for Collaborative Support Programs of New Jersey; Kenneth Minkoff, M.D., Zia Partners; Elyn Saks, law professor at the University of Southern California; John Snook, executive director of the Treatment Advocacy Center; Rhathelia Stroud, presiding judge at DeKalb County (GA) Magistrate Court; and Conni Wells, owner/manager of Axis Group. The committee will hold its first meeting Aug. 31, which will be webcast.