NJAMHAA 75th Anniversary

Commemorative Journal 37 a public service announcement (PSA) being broadcast frequently on the tri-state area’s major network television news channels, as well as 40 times on WGTW-TV between October 10 and 30, 1997. Its impact clearly lasted, as Dr. Wentz was interviewed about the campaign on WMBC-TV on June 6, 1999; a quarter-page PSA was printed in the Philadelphia Inquirer on June 9, 1999; a full-page PSA was published in the September/October 1999 issue of Behavioral Health Management , a national trade publication; and NJN TV featured the PSA as part of its coverage on National Depression Screening Day, also on October 7, 1999. The campaign was featured again on WPVI (Channel 6, the Philadelphia ABC affiliate) in June 2001. As most PSA campaigns have a short shelf life of a few months, this coverage was unprecedented and served to widely educate the public. Especially notable was Dr. Wentz being interviewed by Katie Couric, Anchorwoman of NBC’s The Today Show, in 2001 about the increased use of anti-anxiety and anti- depressant medications in the days following the horrific events of 9/11. Another remarkable illustration was extensive coverage in newspapers about Dr. Wentz’s role in the aftermath of the Southeast Asia tsunami that occured in December 2004. These included feature articles in The Times (Trenton) and Watch the Mugshot PSA youtube.com/watch?v=cmgrNrcMXkw Interest in the mental health impact of social media increased as the technology became more popular, especially among youth. Psychologists began to systematically record anxiety and depression in adolescents and their correlation with social media usage. 2015 The Garrett Lee Smith Memorial Act was reauthorized and expanded to support suicide prevention services for all age groups, as well as research, training and technical assistance. The 21st Century Cures Act was signed into law. It includes Medicaid provisions to increase access to mental health care. 2016 Star-Ledger in January 2005, as well as trade publications and major national network and local television and radio broadcasts. Immediately after escaping the waves and offering help on site, Dr. Wentz worked with NJAMHAA’s Life Sciences and Innovation Council to get medications and supplies to the ravaged country. This was the first initiative of the Sri Lanka Mental Health Relief Project, which continued with partners in Sri Lanka over the following 15 years. These initiatives were undertaken by the New Jersey Mental Health Institute (NJMHI), for which Dr. Wentz serves as Executive Director. NJAMHAA gained additional national coverage with feature articles, both written by Dr. Wentz and then- Director of Public Affairs Dan Seymour: “The Art of Lobbying”, published in The Association Management News in November 2003, and “A David and Goliath Story of Mental Health Advocacy,” published in the November/ December 2004 issue of Behavioral Health Management . Following many other instances of media coverage in subsequent years, another significant example of NJAMHAA’s impact was achieved in FY2016. After an editorial meeting with NJAMHAA, the editor of the Philadelphia Inquirer published a letter from Dr. Wentz about the need to increase fee-for-service (FFS) rates for medication management services. This coverage, along