With more than 220,000 members, NAMI is the nation's largest organization dedicated to improving the lives of persons affected by serious mental illness.    (more) Perfect Storms Threaten Medicaid Mental Health Care Services The threat to mental health services is beginning to play itself out at the state level with a tidal wave of initiatives to limit Medicaid spending for prescribed drugs. It is likely that medications for people with severe mental illness are going to be targeted through several cost and utilization control strategies employed by Medicaid.   More In May 2003, thousands of concerned citizens will march together to raise money and awareness about our country’s need for a world-class treatment and recovery system for people with mental illness.  More NAMI Launches "Campaign for the Mind of America" NAMI Mourns Death of Senator Paul Wellstone AMI advocates throughout the nation are shocked and saddened to learn that the lives of Senator Paul Wellstone (D-MN), his wife and daughter were tragically cut short today in the crash of a small plane in northern Minnesota. Full Statement NAMI Members Remember SPECIAL ALERT: CONGRESS LINKS GUNS TO MENTAL ILLNESS Spurred by an outrageous, stigmatizing CBS' "60 Minutes" broadcast on October 13 that speculatively linked the still unknown sniper in the Greater Washington area to mental illness (along with other inaccuracies) the House of Representatives this week passed, without any hearing or formal vote, a bill introduced by Senator Charles Schumer and Representative Carolyn McCarthy of New York. This bill enforces an obscure 1968 federal law through "incentive grants" to states and local governments to report to the the FBI any person "adjudicated as mentally defective." More NAMI LEADERS WIN TOP HONORS Terry Russell, executive director of NAMI Ohio, and NAMI's Clackamas County affiliate, based in Oregon City, OR, have been honored as the first and second place winners of the 2002 Lilly Reintegration Awards for Advocacy--which recognize outstanding community relations, policy and public education efforts that support reintegration of individuals with mental illnesses into the community. More Want to know more about mental illness? Click below to learn: What is Mental Illness? and Facts and Figures about Mental Illness NAMI E-News Alert Listings sign up here NAMI StigmaBusters' Alert Listings sign up here   advanced search Visit CMHS-funded Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) Technical Assistance Center NEW: Special Section on ACT & Housing

The Nation's Voice on Mental Illness talks about: HOT TOPICS Consumer Outreach NAMI en Español The Secret Sacrifice Time story exposes shameful practice of "custody relinquishment" Many Beautiful Minds Endowmnent Campaign NAMI 2003 Convention Submit Workshop Proposal Online NAMI Board of Directors Learn more about NAMI's leadership Convention 2002: Photos & Cassettes Presentation of NIMH Dir. Dr. Nakamura StigmaBuster Leader Named Volunteer of the Year States In Crisis: Medicaid Cuts & Grassroots Response NAMI-MIO: NAMI's New Multicultural and International Outreach Center Make a Contribution to Help People with Mental Illness Federal Workers: Designate Your CFC Gift Today (CFC 0538)

The NAMI E-News is an electronic newsletter delivering the latest in federal action alerts, legislative and policy updates, and NAMI press releases. Provided free of charge as a public service, the NAMI E-News is read by more than 15,000 NAMI members, policymakers, federal and state legislators, media, providers, health care policy experts, and others interested in improving the lives of individuals with severe mental illnesses and their families.