Hon Patrick Kennedy is a former member of the US House of Representatives (D-R.I.) and the nation's leading political voice on mental illness, addiction, and other brain diseases.
During his 16-year career representing Rhode Island in Congress, he fought a national battle to end medical and societal discrimination against these illnesses, highlighted by his lead sponsorship of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008. As a chief sponsor of one of the major pieces of legislation of 2008, the Mental Health Parity Act, a bill requiring most group health plans to provide coverage for the treatment of mental illnesses that is comparable to what they provide for physical illnesses. Mr Kennedy was also appointed to President Trump's Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis.
He is a co-founder of One Mind for Research, which seeks to increase resources and collaboration in brain research and founder of the Kennedy Forum which advances a roadmap to transform mental health and addiction care.
Mr Kennedy served three terms in the Rhode Island State legislature before he was elected as a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 2011. He also served on the Armed Services Committee and the Appropriations committee, and was on the subcommittee on Veterans Affairs and the Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and the NIH. While in Congress, he was a vocal advocate for healthcare reform and the chief sponsor of the 2008 Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act.
