Legislation and Public Policy
Jail Diversion
Put Jail Diversion back in the DMH
Budget: Grants awarded last year were for 3 years to Lawrence, Waltham,
Watertown and Norfolk County. The 2009 DMH budget just released did not
include Jail Diversion. Rep. Balser is filing an amendment to put JD
back in. We need your help: Please call your representative and ask
him/her to support Rep. Balser's amendment and call Speaker DiMasi and
ask him to put Jail Diversion back in the budget.
Your support is needed for Affordable Housing: The
MA House of Representatives budget released last week under funded
Affordable Housing. Amendments #554, Rep. Kane, #802 Rep. Fennel, and
#1449 would raise the public housing subsidy to $70 million to benefit
47,000 homes in the Commonwealth. Amendment #691. Rep. Richardson
increases funding for the Mass MRVP program from 31.9 million to 35.9
million to give low income households assistance in paying their rent
and help build affordable housing. Please call your representative and
ask her/him to support these amendments.
The National Alliance on Mental Illness
rallied the
Massachusetts State House on 16 April 2008 to highlight their priorities
before the Governor's Office and the Legislature.. We encourage you to
call your legislators and ask them to support the prioritized bills.
They are:
- Children's mental health emergency. Senate Bill 2518
- Mental Health Parity: House Bill 4423
- Treatment of Prisoners with Mental Illness: House Bill 1313
- Pay rates for Human and Social Services: Senate Bill 65
Children's Mental Health Bill 2518
An Act Relative to Children's Mental Health in the Commonwealth is sponsored by Representatives Ruth Balser and Steve
Tolman. This bill would create a coherent system of care for children
with mental health needs. It would ensure that families that seek
access to care would face fewer restrictions around eligibility and
insurance
Mental Health Parity, House Bill 4423
Sponsored by
Rep Ruth Balser builds on the Mental Health Act of 2000. This parity
bill eliminates the distinction between biologically based disorders and
other mental health and substance abuse disorders so that all
individuals would have insurance coverage for treatment of mental health
and substance abuse disorders. It removes arbitrary limits on mental
health and substance abuse services as well as arbitrary annual limits
on non-biologically based mental disorders.
Treatment of Prisoners with Mental Illness, House Bill 1313
Requires that inmates that meet criteria for mental illness be
transferred into residential treatment units or provided with necessary
treatment in the general population. Inmates placed in a segregation
unit must have a mental health evaluation within 24 hours. The bill also
sets requirements for the annual training of the corrections staff.
Pay Rates for Human and Social Services; Senate Bill 65
Sponsored by Senator Gale Candaras. Under this bill human service
contract rates would be based on the fair market value of the services.
The human service providers have not had a raise in over 20 years,
leading to high turnover rates devastating to the recovery process. It
will designate the Division of Health Care Finance Policy within EOHHS
to set rates, establish a regular system of rate review as well as a
process for agencies to appeal the rates.