OKLAHOMA STATE SENATE / From the desk of Sen. Jessica Garvin
With about three months left until the beginning of session, bill filing is underway. I filed the first Senate measure of the upcoming session, Senate Bill 1197, to designate the section of U.S. Highway 77 beginning on the east side of the James C. Nance Bridge extending through Lexington to the intersection of Moffatt Road in Cleveland County as the Col. John L. Smith Medal of Honor Recipient Memorial Highway.
This American Medal of Honor recipient and Marine Corps flying ace was a native of Lexington. He was born in 1914, and he was a 1936 graduate from the University of Oklahoma. As commanding officer of VMF-223, he shot down 19 Japanese planes in WWII and led his squadron to destroy 83 enemy aircraft during the Solomon Islands campaign, making him the leading American fighter ace of the time. I’m so proud to recognize this outstanding patriot and Oklahoma son.
I’ll be filing more bills in the coming weeks. If you have ideas for legislation or concerns about current law that may need to be amended, please let me know as the bill request deadline is Friday, Dec. 8.
Last week, we saw more than 200 new Oklahoma laws take effect including my SB 254, which will help increase access to mental health services by requiring insurers to set up mental and behavioral health care quickly with an out-of-network provider when such care isn’t available in-network.
Unfortunately, we’ve found that many Oklahomans aren’t getting the help they need because of the high cost of out-of-network care, which can be dangerous. To stop this and ensure people get the care they need, this new law will require insurers to charge the same amount whether in-network or out when someone can’t find such services innetwork.
We have a mental health crisis on our hands in Oklahoma with some of the nation’s highest suicide, overdose and addiction rates. According to the Department of Mental Health, approximately 300 Oklahomans are admitted for urgent care or crisis mental health services each week. In the last year, more than 4% of adults had serious thoughts of suicide and one in 10 students reported attempting suicide. These are just some of the many reasons why those in mental crisis need to get services as quickly as possible and this important reform will improve access while also removing the financial barrier for out-of-network care. I’ll continue fighting to improve mental and healthcare services for all Oklahomans in the coming session.
If you or someone you know is facing a mental health crisis, please call 988 to speak to a mental health professional 24/7. Operators are licensed and certified health crisis specialists who answer calls, connect to and dispatch local services and mobile crisis teams. This is part of the state’s comprehensive crisis response system that also includes mobile crisis response, crisis receiving and stabilization services, and follow-up appointments.
If you have any questions or concerns on legislative matters, please write to Senator Jessica Garvin, State Capitol, 2300 N. Lincoln Blvd. Room 237, Oklahoma City, OK, 73105; email me at Jessica.Garvin@oksenate. gov, or call 405-521-5522.
