Despite being one of the few bills that earns support from members of both parties, a proposal to increase federal spending on mental health services appears unlikely to get through Congress this year.
The $500 million bill is backed by the Obama administration as well as leaders of both parties in the House and Senate. However, conservative lawmakers in the House — many of whom backed the government shutdown in 2013 — have raised objections to new spending.
Similarly, conservatives on the House Budget Committee demonstrated their distaste for any new funds for health by recommending a bill last month that would reduce federal spending by $6.5 trillion over the next decade, but at a heavy cost to the public health programs, such as Medicaid, that any ambitious mental health initiative would undoubtedly depend on.
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