Facing his final election as a sitting senator, Domenici predicted New Mexico would know its presidential winner “sooner rather than later” and said he’d be making phone calls “to a number of people who ran, telling them they ran a good race.”

It has to be a bittersweet day for a man who defined political stewardship not only for New Mexico but, in his leadership roles on the national budget and energy, the United States. Last year, recognizing a degenerative brain disease was progressing more rapidly than he had expected, Domenici announced he would not seek re-election to a seat he has held for 36 years.

But on this day when his successor will finally be chosen, he found himself with somewhat mixed emotions.

“It’s been coming to an end for so long, it’s not like it shocks me that this day has finally arrived,” he said. “For the Senate, we’ve had such a surge of work. We’ve been off for a month, then working, then off.

“Each day back here in New Mexico, I’ve experienced a thank-you party with a lot of people. Each one pounds in a little more firmly that I’m finished with the Senate and onto something else.”

As for what that something else might be, the Republican stalwart said he’s still up in the air. He and his wife, Nancy, haven’t decided whether to relocate from Washington, D.C., to Albuquerque. He said their D.C. home is “a beautiful house” and wouldn’t draw the kind of value they would like to get from it. And there are children and grandchildren in both places.

“That’s great,” he said. “Wherever we go, there are grandchildren.”

With the fate of the nation looking precarious, Domenici — who once stood the line against President Reagan’s deficit spending — declared himself concerned.

“I’m so worried,” he said. “If we avoid economic disaster, it’ll have been a great achievement on our part. I don’t know how we’ll get out of financial trouble.”

Domenici helped craft the $700 billion “rescue plan” that Congress recently passed to wide praise and criticism. In it was a requirement that health insurance companies offer parity in mental health care equal to what they offer in physical health care — a long-fought goal of his and one of his lasting legacies, among build-up of the state’s national labs and preservation of the Sandia Mountains as a national wilderness.

Before rushing off to another appearance, he offered his advice to tonight’s presidential victor.

“I believe this is what makes or breaks us: Be careful in who you choose to be your presidential advisers,” he said. “No one is big enough to do it themselves. Neither of these (candidates) has been at it long enough not to need a cadre of leaders.”

He recommended the next president choose advisers who are “well-versed, not too ideological” and “loaded with good, wise opinions.”

The successful passage of the biggest bailout in American history follows a ballot by the House earlier in the week in which lawmakers dramatically rejected the first version of the legislation 228-205.

The legislation that passed the House on Friday was crafted in the U.S. Senate, which passed the bill by a vote of 74-25 Wednesday night.

U.S. Rep. Steve Pearce, R-N.M., who is running for the U.S. Senate, said before Friday’s vote that he would oppose the bill. It is unclear how his Democratic opponent, Rep. Tom Udall, voted Friday or how U.S. Rep. Heather Wilson, R-N.M. voted. Both Pearce and Udall voted against the original bill Monday, while Wilson supported it.

The legislation authorizes purchase of up to $700 billion of troubled mortgage-backed securities created before March 14.

The financial bailout bill itself stipulates that $250 billion would be made available immediately; $100 billion would be used at the president’s discretion; and $350 billion would be up to congressional review.

The bill also would revise the federal alternative minimum tax, which would save the middle class from $60 billion in taxes, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said. The legislation also would create business tax breaks, would prohibit CEOs of companies getting help from receiving “golden parachutes,” would give homeowners facing foreclosure much-needed help, and would raise the FDIC insurance limit at banks to $250,000 from $100,000.

Amid all the policies in the legislation to help right the American economy is a provision that retiring New Mexico Sen. Pete Domenici cares deeply about. It would require insurance companies to require that group health insurance coverage for mental illness and substance abuse be provided on the same terms as coverage for physical illnesses.

]]> http://newmexicoindependent.com/3438/breaking-the-us-house-passes-financial-bailout-bill-more-to-come/feed 22 http://newmexicoindependent.com/3411/what-the-mental-health-parity-act-would-do http://newmexicoindependent.com/3411/what-the-mental-health-parity-act-would-do#comments Fri, 03 Oct 2008 16:54:39 +0000 Kate Nelson http://newmexicoindependent.com/?p=3411 According to information provided by U.S. Sen. Pete Domenici’s office, these are the major provisions of the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Act of 2008. The bill is part of the economic bailout bill passed…

The mandate that insurers treat mental illnesses the same as any other physical ailment has been a long-fought desire of the state’s 36-year senior senator, who is ending his term due to a degenerative brain disease. The House is scheduled to vote at 2 p.m. EST, but Capitol Hill murmurs already hint at a post-election lame-duck session.

“They’re still calling around, so it makes me wonder,” Domenici said of House leaders in an interview with the New Mexico Independent today. “I thought they had it taken care of.

“We still haven’t gotten (U.S. Rep. Steve) Pearce convinced. That’s bad.”

Pearce, a Republican, is running against Democrat Tom Udall to succeed Domenici. Both voted against the House’s earlier bailout bill, which did not contain the mental-health parity provision or energy incentives added by the Senate.

Domenici declined to call the effort a “last gasp,” joking that he’s breathing fine. But he did acknowledge that gaining approval for the provision could appear to require that members “cripple it through.”

Lauded by The New York Times as “sound and fair-minded,” the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act has nevertheless been criticized as a potential insurance-buster, a sweetener to persuade balky House members and a “quirky procedural twist.”

Because many insurance plans already include parity, Domenici downplayed fears of demanding it at a time when the costs for such plans are escalating.

“Most insurers were present at the table,” he said. “They liked it. Many of them already offer it. We’re just guaranteeing it for the future.”

Domenici has first-hand experience with the ravages of mental illness and the hurdles to getting proper care. One of his daughters has a form of schizophrenia and, after bringing her problems to light, he encountered countless people whose families walked the same road.

“I’ve gotten more credit than I deserve for this bill,” he said. “People stop me more on this bill than any other initiative — `You’re the senator who wants mental health parity.’

“Having mental illness in families is still not an open issue. We’re embarrassed about it. You don’t know until you ask people about it. But it’s everywhere. Rich people. Poor people. Black people. Hispanics.”

By providing insurance coverage, Domenici said he hopes that the current, limited research and treatment options for mental-health care will increase the same way they did when Congress required coverage for heart conditions. If so, he said, “It won’t be a trauma to the health costs.”

Year by year, the bill has gained more congressional acceptance. Different versions passed both chambers this year, with lingering concerns over its potential $3.8 billion cost over five years. With the $800 billion rescue package, the Politico’s David Rogers said that issue appears to no longer be a stumbling block.

Besides the late Sen. Wellstone, a Democrat, Domenici has worked closely with Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy on the bill. In August, Democratic Sen. Chris Dodd said at the inaugural Domenici Public Policy Conference at New Mexico State University that the bill should pass as a tribute to both Domenici and Kennedy, who is being treated for brain cancer.

“I don’t think any bill should be passed as a tribute to any senator singularly,” Domenici said. “This is a tribute to the country. It adds to the American character.”