On Wednesday, Jan. 28, Sen. Henry Ingwersen, D-Arundel,
introduced a bill to promote mental health and wellness in heritage industries.
LD 2144, “Resolve, to Establish a Working Group to Prioritize Wellness and
Mental Health Resources for Heritage Industries,” was the subject of a public
hearing before the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee, which the
senator chairs.
The bill seeks to create a working group that will convene and
produce policy recommendations to address the mental health needs of Maine’s
farmers, fishermen and loggers.
“Last year, I spoke at Maine’s first-ever forum for the
health and wellness of farmers and fishermen,” said Ingwersen. “At the event, I
heard about some of the challenges, including the concerning results of a
survey on mental health, that these hardworking men and women face, trying to
take care of their mental health — while doing physically demanding labor.
Reflecting on those sobering statistics, I simply could not sit back and do
nothing while the men and women who are the backbone of our state suffer in
silence. When they hurt, their families hurt, too.”
As proposed, the working group would include members from
the Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry; the Department of
Health and Human Services; the Department of Marine Resources; the University
of Maine Cooperative Extension; the agriculture industry; the fishing industry;
the forestry or logging industry; a statewide mental health services
organization; an occupational health and safety organization; experts in rural
public health services; and a statewide organization that delivers community
services.
If approved, the working group would produce a report by
Dec. 1, 2026. It would authorize the Committee on Agriculture, Conservation and
Forestry; the Committee on Health and Human Services; and the Committee on
Marine Resources to submit legislation to the 133rd Maine Legislature in 2027.
Recently, the University of Maine Cooperative Extension
conducted a survey, revealing that 61% of respondents from agriculture,
aquaculture and wild-harvest fisheries identified the need for increased public
education to raise awareness and reduce stigma around mental health. Suicide
rates remain higher for agriculture, fishing and forestry occupation groups.
In the coming weeks, the committee will schedule a work
session for the bill.