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ADOVACY UPDATE - 2012

 

Ellyn Jeager

Mental Health America of Georgia

Director of Public Policy & Advocacy

 

May 7, 2012                                                                                                             Issue #13.2012

Because there is no health without Mental Health!

Advocacy Update May, 2012

 

Drug Screening Bill

 

MHA of Georgia and its partners worked hard this past session to defeat a bill (HB861) aimed at TANF (Temporary Assistance to Needy Families) recipients. The bill requires people applying for TANF to pass a drug screening test. In addition to taking the test, the person also has to pay for it. This bill was modeled after a controversial Florida bill which also targeted this vulnerable population.

 

Sponsors of the bill claimed it would save Georgians money and provide an incentive for people to stop using illegal drugs. However, one of the many objections to the bill was that it would end up in court proving to be unconstitutional, an invasion of privacy, and not save the state any money. In fact, a court case could prove very costly to Georgia.

 

Now Florida's drug testing law has proven to be unconstitutional and in fact has cost the state of Florida approximately $47,000.

 

Governor Deal signed this bill.

 

Criminal Justice Reform Act

 

Governor Deal signed into law the Criminal Justice Reform Act (HB 1176), legislation that will keep nonviolent offenders out of prisons. The opportunity now exists for rehabilitation and to be a contributing member of the community. This is good policy for Georgia and should be extended to a rewrite for the juvenile code in next year's legislative session.

 

GOVERNOR DEAL:
"With this bold new direction in criminal justice, we will bolster public safety, increase our chances of rehabilitating lives and bend the unsustainable cost curve we face in our prison system," Deal said. "We spend $1.2 billion a year on our prison system and those costs were set to soar far beyond what we can afford. That makes no sense for taxpayers when there are more cost-effective means that have better outcomes."

 

Medicaid Redesign

 

With the 2012 legislative session over, much attention is being turned to the Navigant Report, and the possibility of moving into a managed care system for the aged, blind and disabled populations.   Navigant is a company hired by the Department of Community Health (DCH) to collect data and help guide DCH in changes to the Medicaid and CHIP programs in Georgia. This process started in the fall with focus groups around the state meeting to talk with Navigant about the aged, blind and disabled populations and how Medicaid and CHIP are working, or not working, to meet their needs.  

 

There are now three Navigant Task Force work groups which meet on a regular basis:

  1. The Aged Blind and Disabled Task Force Group
  2. The Children and Families Task Force Group
  3. The Providers Task Force Group

The State is concerned about the future of Medicaid spending and believes a managed care system would produce the best outcomes. Moving into a Managed Care system would be a major change for recipients of mental health, substance use, disability, and aging services. Advocates from all these groups have come together to work for the best outcomes for these populations.  

 

CARE-M, the Coalition to Assure Redesign Effectiveness for Medicaid: A new Coalition has been formed to address the Redesign of Medicaid and Peachcare, and we are a part of it. CARE-M is presently meeting with the care management companies seeking to contract with the state about their ideas and experiences.  

WE NEED YOUR SUPPORT!

 

Public Policy & Advocacy is only one of many programs developed by MHA of Georgia to further our mission of enhancing the mental health of all Georgians through education, outreach and advocacy.

 

Click here to learn more about our programs.  Your support will help us continue our work educating Georgians about mental illness, working to eliminate stigma and advocating on behalf of people with  mental illness in our state.  Click here to support MHA of Georgia.