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Drug drop-off coming in Erie County
Cattaraugus, Chautauqua eye plan to improve mental health services New York City Report Shows More Were Near Poverty in 2011 Dutchess County Council Targets Domestic Violence: The council includes representatives from Dutchess, Ulster, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan and Westchester counties. Steuben, Chemung, Schuyler sheriffs support retired, armed police in schools U.S. Infant Mortality Rate Fell Steadily From '05 to '11 NYC Plan Sets 21 as Legal Age to Buy Tobacco Video Games May Encourage Healthy Behavior One-Third of U.S. Children Found to Be Overweight or Obese FDA's Rejection Of Generic OxyContin May Have Side Effects: A push to make narcotic painkillers harder to abuse means that generic versions of OxyContin won't be allowed. But drugs that are more resistant to abuse are expensive and can still be addictive. NYSOPWDD: In the last half of 2012, more than 1,500 direct support professionals (DSPs) from both state and nonprofit provider agencies met to learn about the newly adopted national code of ethics, and to discuss the challenges and rewards they face in their profession. The DSP dialogues were undertaken by OPWDD in partnership with the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals (NADSP) with a goal to begin a conversation with DSPs to better support their work and our shared mission of helping people with developmental disabilities live richer lives. The information from those gatherings, now summarized by NADSP in a brief report, will be used to help shape our future efforts on behalf of the direct support profession. |
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 Health commissioner: "We are at a tipping point"
Dr. Nirav Shah is optimistic about the future of health care in New York, but he's a bit worried, too.
"This is actually a time for hope," Shah, Commissioner of the State Department of Health, told me during a one-on-one interview this week. "We are at a tipping point, where the economy is starting to show signs of going in the right direction [and] where in health care, the majority is heading in the right direction in terms of embracing change."
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WEBINARS:
TA-lk Webinar: Important Updates on Affordable Care Act Implementation
April 29 3:30-4:30
Register
Two national behavioral health leaders-Ron Manderscheid, Ph.D., and Harvey Rosenthal-will discuss healthcare reform in terms of financing and funding, increases in the recovery orientation of behavioral health care, and the tremendous potential for the emerging peer support profession.
May 9 3 to 4:30
Register
Diversion of Youth with Co-Occurring Disorders in the Juvenile Justice System
May 20 10:30-3:30
Register
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CLMHD Calendar
CLMHD SPRING FULL MEMBERSHIP MEETING HOLIDAY INN SARATOGA SPRINGS NY
Mentoring Workshop: Sunday, April 28
10 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
Full Membership Meeting: Mon-Tues April 29-30
MAY
Officer's & Chairs Conference Call
May 15 th
8:00 a.m. - 9:00 a.m.
Call In Only - contact CLMHD for access
Mental Hygiene Planning
Training Day
May 7th
9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.
Embassy Suites
6646 Old Collamer Rd,
Syracuse NY
(see details in this issue)
SAVE THE DATE: CLMHD COMMITTEE DAY
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Location: Albany Airport Best Western
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Need to remember some important facts for that big presentation at work? Clench your right hand while preparing to remember. When giving that talk, ball up your left hand and you'll call to mind those details, no problem. Read
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The New York State Conference of Local Mental Hygiene Directors advances public policies and awareness for people with mental illness, chemical dependency and developmental disabilities. We are a statewide membership organization that consists of the Commissioner/ Director of each of the state's 57 county mental hygiene departments and the mental hygiene department of the City of New York.
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New Health Home Information Resource Center Launched on Medicaid.gov
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In the two years since the Affordable Care Act authorized the creation of Medicaid health homes (Section 2703), states have embraced these models to provide comprehensive care coordination for Medicaid beneficiaries with chronic conditions. During this time the Integrated Care Resource Center (ICRC) has offered technical assistance resources to states to support the development of health home programs. Now, ICRC's health home resources are moving to Medicaid.gov.
The new Health Home Information Resource Center on Medicaid.gov offers a variety of technical assistance services for states as well as a resource library of continuously updated materials. States may use the resource center to request one-on-one technical assistance, access peer-learning opportunities, and find resources to guide their health home design and implementation.
Health home technical assistance activities are provided by Mathematica Policy Research and the Center for Health Care Strategies with support from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Technical assistance resources for integrating the care of Medicare-Medicaid enrollees ("dual eligibles") will remain part of ICRC.
States can request health home technical assistance, by completing the request form available at Medicaid.gov and sending it to
LEARN MORE
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State-by-state estimates of uninsured individuals with behavioral health conditions
An excellent resource from SAMSHA containing state-by-state estimates of uninsured individuals with behavioral health conditions who will be eligible through Medicaid expansion and the Healthcare Marketplace.
These estimates are based on SAMHSA's National Survey on Drug Use & Health and the U.S. Bureau of the Census' American Community Survey. The data shows the prevalence and characteristics of individuals by mental and substance use disorder in each state compared to the nation. Use this link to access all 50 reports. Read
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 Drunk Driving Not the Only Way Alcohol Leads to Teen Deaths: Two-thirds of underage drinking-related fatalities have nothing to do with a car, MADD reports
Less than one-third of the 4,700 annual underage drinking-related deaths in the United States result from road crashes, according to a new study.
The findings show the importance of preventing underage drinking even if there is no risk of drinking and driving. Analyzing 2010 federal government data, the group found that 32 percent of the drinking-related deaths among young people aged 15 to 20 involved traffic crashes, while 68 percent involved incidents such as murder (30 percent), suicide (14 percent), alcohol poisoning (9 percent) and other causes (15 percent).
"These data show that taking away the keys truly does not take away all of the risks when it comes to underage drinking," MADD national president Jan Withers said in a news release from the group. Read
More: The U.S. National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism urges parents to talk to their children about alcohol. (publication)
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 Young Adults with autism Can Thrive in High Tech Jobs
The job hunt is complicated enough for most high school and college graduates - and even tougher for the growing number of young people on the autism spectrum. Despite the obstacles that people with autism face trying to find work, there's a natural landing place: the tech industry.
Amelia Schabel graduated from high school five years ago. She had good grades and enrolled in community college. But it was too stressful. After less than a month she was back at home, doing nothing. "I did go to a community college for a semester, but that definitely was not for me," she says. Schabel has Asperger's syndrome, a disorder on the "high functioning" end of the autism spectrum. Read
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 How Therapy Can Help in the Golden Years
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"I just woke up to the fact that I have a mind of my own. Talk about a late bloomer."
JUDITA GROSZ, 69, of Pembroke Pines, Fla., after recovering from a debilitating depression.
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Marvin Tolkin was 83 when he decided that the unexamined life wasn't worth living. Until then, it had never occurred to him that there might be emotional "issues" he wanted to explore with a counselor.
"I don't think I ever needed therapy," said Mr. Tolkin, a retired manufacturer of women's undergarments who lives in Manhattan and Hewlett Harbor, N.Y.
Though he wasn't clinically depressed, Mr. Tolkin did suffer from migraines and "struggled through a lot of things in my life" - the demise of a long-term business partnership, the sudden death of his first wife 18 years ago.
"When I hit my 80s I thought, 'The hell with this.' I don't know how long I'm going to live, I want to make it easier," said Mr. Tolkin, now 86. "Everybody needs help, and everybody makes mistakes. I needed to reach outside my own capabilities."
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Bureau of Justice Assistance Funding Helps
Offenders with Co-Occurring Disorders
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) is seeking applications for Second Chance Act Reentry Program for Adult Offenders with Co-Occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disorders.
This program furthers the Department's mission by providing resources to state, local, and tribal governments to establish or enhance the provision of treatment to adult offenders reentering the community. The Second Chance Act Reentry Program for Adult Offenders with Co-Occurring Substance Abuse and Mental Health Disorders grant awards funds to treat co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders in prisons and jails and to provide recovery support services, reentry planning and programming, and post-release treatment and aftercare programming in the community through the completion of parole or court supervision.
The deadline to apply for this opportunity is May 16, 2013. Applicants must register with Grants.gov i n order to submit an application.
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Medicaid Savings Tallied
Despite a 4.8% increase in new Medicaid enrollment in New York state from March 2012 to February 2013, state spending on Medicaid was $192 million below projections through February. Total spending was $14.47 billion, compared with the projection of $14.67 billion, according to a state Department of Health report released this week. Efforts to expand managed care resulted in lower spending on fee-for-service, around $114 million below projections.
Across the state, enrollment in Medicaid managed care plans, including managed long-term care, reached nearly 4 million as of February, an increase of about 377,000 enrollees, or 10.5%, over March 2012. Most of that volume was driven by an 84,800-person increase in enrollment among those under age 19. The report is online here.
The report gives a regional breakdown of spending. In New York City, total annual Medicaid spending dropped to $13.4 million from April 2012 to February 2013, from nearly $13.7 million the previous period. Emergency room visits during that time dropped to 581,000, from 644,000 from April 2011 to February 2012.
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 Poor Mental Health Is a 'Signature Scar' of Afghanistan and Iraq Wars
Persistent mental health conditions -- anxiety, depression and sleep disorders -- along with neck, back, and joint pains among Afghanistan and Iraq war veterans may someday "be recognized as signature scars of the long war," that began with the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan in 2011, the Armed Forces Heath Surveillance Center reported. Read
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