From the President and Interim CEO / ED
Dr . Beverly Smith , 45 th AMHCA President , 2021 – 2022 , & Interim CEO / ED
continued from page 4
• Saba Aqel , co-chair of AMHCA ’ s Graduate Student and Emerging Professionals Committee
• Dr . Beverly Smith , current president & interim CEO / ED of the American Mental Health Counselors Association
Many thanks to those in the Georgia and Maryland who helped their states become the first two states to pass the Counseling Compact . States now working to pass the Counseling Compact in 2022 include : Alabama , Arizona , Colorado , Delaware , Florida , Kentucky , Louisiana , Maine , Missouri , Nebraska , New Hampshire , Idaho , Indiana , North Carolina , Ohio , Oklahoma , South Carolina , Tennessee , Utah , Virginia , and Wyoming .
Working for Medicare Authorization
AMHCA participated in a national Medicare campaign to help Licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselors ( LCMHCs ) gain authorization to be Medicare providers . AMHCA will continue to engage others in our efforts , which can help ameliorate the mental health crisis in our country . Once LCMHCs are Medicare providers , we can help alleviate the shortage of clinicians so that all Americans in the Medicare population ( ages 65 and older ) who need treatment — for opioid addictions , anxiety-related disorders spurred by the coronavirus pandemic , and other mental healthcare services — can get the care that they need .
Lastly , to ensure that the voice of advocacy for authorizing Medicare provider status of LCMHCs is heard on a broader frequency , AMHCA participated in a Medicare-Now podcast , which reached more than 40,000 listeners across the country engaged in the Medicare political arena .
Working for the Future of the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Profession
AMHCA also continues to support many other initiatives . Among them are : the Mental Health & Wellness in Schools Act , 988 Crisis Funding ( see article on page 9 ), Sound the Alarm for Kids , Aging Mental Healthcare , Commercial Payors to Continue Telehealth Coverage , Improving the National ’ s Mental Health System , New Moms Act , and Stabilizing Medicaid and CHP Coverage .
Early in 2022 , AMHCA will reassess our financial stability , since it affects the decisions made by our board of directors as well as AMHCA ’ s CEO . I will continue to lead with transparency and to host town hall meetings so that members can be informed and ask needed questions . In our first town hall meeting in 2022 , we will share updates on our newly formed committees on Membership and Strategic Planning , as well as our partnership with SAMHSA and our partnership with psychotherapy . net on suicide prevention initiatives .
As we reflect on this past year and are forward thinkers for 2022 , I encourage members to be active in your state chapter and to encourage new-member participation . You can do this by making room for diversity , equity , and inclusion of new faces , ideas , and solutions . Also , please join in the work needed to pass the Counseling Compact in your state .
Happy Holidays to you and your families , and join us in 2022 for the new and exciting things AMHCA has planned to advance our profession .
AMHCA Board of Directors
President , 2021 – 2022 , & Interim CEO / ED Beverly Smith president @ amhca . org
President-Elect Fredrick Dombrowski presidentelect @ amhca . org
Past President Angele Moss – Baker pastpresident @ amhca . org
Treasurer ( interim ) H . Gray Otis treasurer @ amhca . org
Director-at-Large Tony Onorato directoratlarge @ amhca . org
North Atlantic Region Director Cynthia L . Jamison northatlanticregiondirector @ amhca . org
Southern Region Director Aaron Norton southernregiondirector @ amhca . org
Midwest Region Director Jim Blundo midwestregiondirector @ amhca . org
Western Region Director Karen Langer westernregiondirector @ amhca . org
Graduate Student Representative Daun Kwag dkwag1 @ student . gsu . edu
AASCB Rep . ( ex-officio ) Joseph Weeks josephrweeks @ yahoo . com
AMHCA Staff
• Chief Strategic Officer , Director of Communications & Chapter Relations Whitney Meyerhoeffer wmeyerhoeffer @ amhca . org
• Director of Finance , Operations , & Membership Management Melissa McShepard mmcshepard @ amhca . org
• Director , Office of Credentialing and Continuing Education , Director of Events Rebecca Woodson rwoodson @ amhca . org
• Director of Program Coordination H . Gray Otis gray _ otis @ yahoo . com
The Advocate Magazine Fall 2021 American Mental Health Counselors Association ( AMHCA ) www . amhca . org 55