NAMI CAN!
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Big Week in Capitol
The following information was supplied by NAMI California's lives-in-the-capitol lobbyist, Judith Wolen. It will be a big part of Tuesday's NAMI CAN! Affiliate Liaison's Conference Call agenda. To see the letters that NAMI CA has written in support or opposition to the following bills, visit Legislation: Position Papers at NAMI California.
This coming week will end the 2011/2012 Legislative Session. The last day to pass bills to the Governor for action is this coming Friday at 12 midnight. The Governor will have 30 days to take action on hundreds of bills that will be sent to him by week's end. The Governor has called a special session to be held concurrently with the start of the 2013-14 session, starting on December 3, 2012. The special session, which can only focus on one topic at a time, will focus on the implementation of the ACA in California. Any Bill introduced in the special session can only be related to the healthcare reform implementation and if passed will become effective 90 days from the adjournment of the special session.
AB 154 (Beal D) Health care coverage: mental health services. Support
NAMI CA co-sponsored this behavioral health parity bill and has worked hard for it for both years of the 2011/12 legislative session. This bill is likely dead. Amendments regarding mental health parity were taken in Assembly and Senate Appropriations committees yesterday. These amendments are intended to address the key components of AB 154. There are more amendments to come so there is always a possibility that this bill could be moved. NAMI CA is supporting the Essential Health Benefits Bills that now contain the amendments from AB 154.
AB 1453 (Monning D) Health care coverage: essential health benefits. Support
This bill is on the Senate Floor and will be voted on this week, this bill was amended on 8/23/12. NAMI CA supports the amendments.
AB 1569 (Allen D) Community mental health services: assisted outpatient treatment. Support
This bill has gone to the governor for action. NAMI CA has sent a letter in support.
AB 1907 (Lowenthal, Bonnie D) Inmates: psychiatric medication. Support
This bill is back to the Assembly for concurrence on amendments from the Senate. It is on the consent file and should move to the governor sometime this week. We have a letter ready for the governor.
AB 2134 (Chesbro D) Community mental health services: assisted outpatient treatment. Oppose
This is a bill that is still stuck in a policy committee.It has not been reconsidered by the Health committee. NAMI CA is taking no action at this time.
SB 9 (Yee D) Sentencing. Support
The bill passed off the Senate floor on concurrence this past week on a mixed vote. It is now on the way to Governor for action. NAMI CA has sent a letter in support.
SB 951 (Hernandez D) Health care coverage: essential health benefits. Support
This is Senate version of AB 1453 (or vice versa). It is on the Assembly Floor after being amended last week and will be voted on this week. NAMI CA supports the amendments.
Finally, Paul Cumming sent along this interesting article with a very informative, animated chart. We recommend it to you:
http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2012/08/mapping-americas-healthcare-costs?
- - Bettie Reinhardt, MPH
NAMI CAN! Coordinator
bettie.reinhardt@namicalifornia.org
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After Kelly Thomas, Santa Ana Police Rework Procedures
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NAMI California Board Member Randy Beckx, a former police officer, leads the way as Orange County teams up with law enforcement and mental health professionals to revise the way it works with the homeless and persons with mental illnesses.
Today, Santa Ana's Civil Center Patrol benefits from Contacting the Mentally Ill Training to: "Recognize signs of mental illness, and learn the proper tactics to deal with it."
Read the full story at NAMI California.org.
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SLO/Santa Babara NAMI CA Regional Meeting Date for October Updated
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NOTE: The San Luis Obispo/Santa Barbara Regional Meeting (includes Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties) has been changed to October 22 in Santa Barbara.
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Webcasts on Wellness Centers Recorded by CiMH
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| CiMH recently provided a series of webinars on Wellness Centers. Each of the four webinars is thought provoking and focuses on a different aspect of wellness centers. | | | |
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Information Notice and County Allocations for the Mental Health Loan Assumption Program
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Attached you will find information about the Mental Health Loan Assumption Program (MHLAP) now being administered by the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development, along with county allocations for FY 2012-13. This is part of the Workforce Education and Training (WET) program component of the Mental Health Services Act. MHLAP is a financial incentive strategy designed to recruit and retain mental health professionals in the Public Mental Health System workforce who reflect California's diverse mental health consumer population.
MHLAP offers educational loan repayment to prospective and current employees who work in hard-to-fill or retain positions in the Public Mental Health System. The maximum MHLAP award is $10,000 per year. A total of $10,239,673 for MHLAP is available in FY 2012-13. The funds allocated for each county are displayed in Enclosure 1. These funds are composed of $10 Million in FY 2012-13 and $239,673 carried forward from the 15 counties that had remaining funds in the FY 2011-12 program cycle.
Click here to view/download information notice.
If you have further questions about this program, you can contact Adrienne Shilton of CiMH: ashilton@cimh.org.
CiMH staff provides technical assistance to county behavioral health departments to support the implementation of local workforce development and deployment programs, and works to ensure that statewide and regional workforce programs are developed and implemented. The MHSA WET funds are intended to build infrastructure and capacity statewide for California's public mental health workforce.
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CalMHSA releases Request for Statement of Qualifications (RFSQ) for Stigma and Discrimination Reduction
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CalMHSA has announced the release of an RFSQ for Stigma and Discrimination Reduction for Program One: Strategies for a Supportive Environment, Component One: Stigma and Discrimination Reduction Consortium.
Through this RFSQ solicitation, CalMHSA seeks to ascertain the qualifications of a consumer or client-led organization to assume the management, oversight of administrative and organizational functions, of the Stigma and Discrimination Reduction (SDR) Consortium through June 2014. The selected organization must demonstrate the capacity to provide a statewide voice on the critical impact of stigma, resulting discrimination, and disparities experienced by individuals, families, and communities.
Attached is the complete RFSQ packet, which CalMHSA encourages all to widely distribute within your local communities.
Please note questions relative to the RFSQ can be addressed at the "Prospective Respondents' Webinar," to be held on Wednesday, August 29, 2012 at 2:00 PM (Pacific Daylight Time).
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Corrected Contact Information: Lisa Bohne
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This week's monthly newsletter incorrectly listed the email address for NAMI California Consumer Programs Coordinator Lisa Bohne. Please change your address books to: lisa.bohne@namicalifornia.org
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Request for Referrals for Interviewees for PBS Stigma Documentary
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KVIE (Sacramento) is in production on a statewide documentary that will be broadcast on Public Broadcast Service (PBS) stations statewide focused on stigma experienced by people facing mental health challenges. Producers have gathered a great deal of very useful data, survey results, study conclusions, etc. which will definitely help inform the efforts. However, the project would appreciate your ideas on potential interview subjects to reflect the great diversity of Californians facing stigma, people with influence over those individuals, and those who are working to help reduce this significant societal problem.
Preferably, suggestions should include ideas for interview subjects whose diversity is reflected ethnically, culturally, and by geographic location, age and lifestyle.
You can provide names and contact information so the producers can reach out and discuss the goals and intentions for the program. If you feel more comfortable communicating with potential interview subjects before passing their contact information along to producers, that's perfectly OK!
Please send your suggestions to CalMHSAideas@kvie.org. Thanks in advance for your
help and ideas!
The project is funded by the voter-approved Mental Health Services Act (Prop 63), and is administered by the California Mental Health Services Authority (CalMHSA)
If you have any questions, contact Scott Rose at Runyon Saltzman & Einhorn, the contractor for the SDR social marketing campaign, at (916) 446-9900 or srose@rs-e.com.
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Army-wide Suicide Stand Down September 27th
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Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. Lloyd J. Austin III ordered an Army-wide suicide "stand down", scheduled for Sep. 27, as a way to empower leadership to prevent further loss of life due to suicide.
The stand down is meant to familiarize all members of the Army family with the health promotion, risk reduction, suicide prevention, and comprehensive Soldier and family fitness resources available in the Army.
The stand down will also focus on how to improve the health and discipline of the force and reducing the stigma associated with seeking care for behavioral health issues.
Although the stand down is just for one day, Morales said training and activities will be conducted throughout September, which is recognized in the Army as Suicide Prevention Month. Efforts will likely continue into October, particularly for the Reserve Component.
stigmatized."
In addition to the terrain walk and unit events, other suicide awareness activities are planned throughout September, including health fairs and resilience training. A special Suicide Prevention Month webpage has been established on the Army Suicide Prevention website, which explains more: www.preventsuicide.army.mil.
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Orange County Community Forum on the MHSA, Sept. 13
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If You Paid for Paxil�, You Could Get a Payment from a Class Action Settlement
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A class action settlement will provide money to California residents who were 18 years old or older and who paid for any portion of the price of the prescription antidepressant Paxil� while living in California from January 14, 1999 through January 1, 2003, and who qualify under the settlement (these people are called "Class Members"). If you're included, you may ask for a payment, or you can exclude yourself from, or object to, the settlement. The Superior Court for the State of California, County of Los Angeles will have a hearing to decide whether to approve the settlement so that payments can be issued. The lawsuit claims that GlaxoSmithKline falsely advertised and promoted Paxil� as being non-habit forming or non-addictive and that GlaxoSmithKline's advertisements and promotional materials failed to disclose the risk of symptoms from stopping or discontinuing Paxil�. GlaxoSmithKline denies each of these allegations. Click here for details. |
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Contact Information
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Weekly Report
NAMI California
1851 Heritage Lane,
Suite 150
Sacramento, CA 95815
Phone: 916-567-0163 Fax: 916-567-1757
www.namicalifornia.org
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