Schlossberg: Getting people the mental health help they need, when they need it
Rep. Mike Schlossberg May 8, 2025 | 2:39 PM
Schlossberg: Getting people the mental health help they need, when they need it
HARRISBURG, May 8 – Rep. Mike Schlossberg, D-Lehigh, released the following statement on mental health after Wednesday’s House Judiciary Committee hearing on the state’s Mental Health Procedures Act:
“We have all heard the nightmare stories. The person who could not get help, whose family could not convince authorities that their loved one was a danger to themselves. We know that well-intended decisions have resulted in people being discharged into the community at large, only to hurt themselves or others. Just as damagingly – even if it’s less dramatically – are the people who lost an opportunity to get the mental health help they needed, sending them further into a spiral of mental illness and costing them months, years or decades of their lives.
“As Pennsylvania has made strides toward breaking down stigma surrounding mental health, several themes have emerged. One of the more glaring issues has been helping people get the help they need when they need it.
“The hearing, hosted by Rep. Tim Briggs and Rep. Rob Kauffman in the House Judiciary Committee, explored how the Mental Health Procedures Act can be improved to better facilitate people getting the help they need.
“The Mental Health Procedures Act was approved in 1976. The world then no longer exists, and how we address mental health needs to better reflect the world we do live in.
“Over the past several months, I have engaged dozens of stakeholders in a conversation on how we modernize the MHPA to be the most efficient, remove barriers to care, and get people the help they need. I am grateful for the time these stakeholders took to participate in this conversation and lend their experiences and expertise to this entire process. Mental health challenges touch almost every conceivable part of our community—families, the criminal justice system, education, health care, the economy and more. The people who provided this critical feedback reflect that reality.
“As we move forward with this discussion surrounding the modernization of the MHPA, we need to make sure we are balancing individual human rights, responsiveness and resources to best serve the people we all represent. I look forward to continuing down this path and working together across the aisle and across the three branches of government to get this done.
“I do want to make one thing abundantly clear: there is no one, straight path to get this done. Addressing mental health in Pennsylvania requires an understanding of the complicated nature of ensuring people get the help they need when they need it, and that means taking a multifaceted approach to solve a multifaceted issue. Aligning treatment, the criminal justice system, and resources will take a great deal of work, but as long as we continue to keep humans at the center of this issue, I am hopeful that we are up to the challenge.