Mental health care is vital for one United Methodist pastor’s teen, and the pastor says we can offer public witness to improve access in our state by participating in Advocacy Day.

GLENN M. WAGNER
Michigan Conference Communications

A United Methodist pastor and family in Michigan are among those looking forward to the upcoming Advocacy Day in Lansing.* They are passionate about this matter since it touches on real concerns at home. This pastor and family are grateful for this Michigan-wide effort by people of faith to raise awareness and engage state legislators in support of better mental health initiatives.

Advocacy Day 2024 is sponsored by the Michigan Conference of The United Methodist Church and will be held on Wednesday, March 13. Central United Methodist Church, 215 N. Capitol Ave., across the street from the State Capitol building, will be the host. This day of learning, conversations with state legislators, worship, and witness will focus on making a positive difference for people and policies related to mental health concerns and resources in Michigan.

Click here to register, review the day’s schedule, and learn how to prepare for Advocacy Day. This event is open to all Michiganders wishing to learn and offer a positive witness for the love of Jesus as it relates to this justice matter. Click here to review a list of things you and your congregation can do to support Advocacy Day, even if you can’t be there in person.

According to 2022 research provided by Mental Health America, 19.86% of American adults, or almost 50 million people, live with some form of mental illness. Here in Michigan, 20.32%, or 1,571,000 residents, are affected by mental illness.

Mental health issues are much more than statistics for one Michigan United Methodist household. Real mental health needs are personal for this pastor and family. Parents share worries over the mental health of their talented child, an upper-level student at a Michigan high school. This student lives with significant mental health issues and needs ongoing mental health care that is not always readily available.

According to the pastoral parent, inpatient care that is sometimes needed is 45 minutes away by car. The psychiatrist seen for helpful counsel and care has changed three times in recent years, with a lag time of three to four months before the next appointment can be scheduled. The student currently receives care via Zoom online from an out-of-state psychiatrist. Much of the student’s regular care depends on his parents, who shoulder continuing unease.

The teen is a good student and a gifted member of the high school marching band. But this teen is also adversely affected by several diagnosed mental health issues, including high anxiety, depression, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

According to the teen’s father, there are times when his child withdraws, refuses to go to school, stops taking medications, and is unable to function normally. This unpredictable and erratic behavior has lowered an otherwise excellent grade point average, caused absences from school, and resulted in missing a long-anticipated school trip out of state during what would have been a first-ever extended journey away from home without mom and dad. This teen, like many peers, is strong-willed, but they currently lack the ability to understand the consequences of personal actions. Daily management of medications is an ongoing concern.

Despite continuing mental health issues, this student has dreams for the future, which include going to college and hopes of becoming a music teacher. However, the parents live with real questions about how their growing offspring will be able to hold a job or survive independently after high school without assistance.

The pastor interviewed for this story values the excellent health insurance for Michigan Conference clergy and their families but also knows the high costs of health care and how many policies lack adequate coverage for mental health services. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 25.3 million people, about 7% of all Americans, had no health insurance in 2023.

The United Methodist pastor also knows that many of the insured, and especially our uninsured poor, are unable to afford needed mental health care. Even if mental health care is made affordable with the help of insurance or public assistance, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), there is still a shortage of providers. Here in Michigan, 4,224,425 people live in a community that does not have enough mental health professionals to care for them.

To improve the quality of and accessibility to mental health care in Michigan, Advocacy Day participants will be speaking with their state legislators and encouraging them to support three legislative priorities:

• • House Bill 4707, regarding mental health parity, would require insurance companies to cover mental health care at the same rate as physical health care. Click here to learn more about how the lack of parity is affecting Michiganders.
  • House Bills 5371 and 5372 would codify Certified Community Behavioral Clinics (CCBHCs) into state law. These clinics are already improving access across the state, and these bills will ensure these clinics stay open and increase funding to expand the program.
  • Increased funding in the state budget would grow a full menu of complementary care, including the number of in-patient psychiatric beds and step-down care.

The United Methodist pastor interviewed for this story strongly supports the annual advocacy days sponsored by the Michigan Conference at the Capitol. The pastor remembers, “Last year’s Advocacy Day focused on finding solutions to gun violence in Michigan. Some 350 persons gathered in Lansing for prayer and peaceful conversations with elected representatives on this matter of mutual concern. These conversations contributed to the bipartisan passage of three bill packages that have resulted in better gun control laws in Michigan.”

Hopes, prayers, and active presence are encouraged so that Michigan United Methodists will continue to offer constructive public witness to improve mental health access and services to real persons, families, and communities who need this care.

*Editor’s note: This family has requested their names be left out of this article out of concern for privacy.