Thursday, February 10, 2005

FY 2006 Budget Hurts Mental Illness Programs Alert at the NAMI web site - "As a federal entitlement, Medicaid is not subject to the same annual appropriation by Congress that discretionary programs are. Nonetheless, the President's budget does include a number of recommended reductions for Medicaid that Congress is likely to consider as part of a budget "reconciliation" bill that will be taken up later this year. Overall, these reductions are projected to reduce federal Medicaid spending (i.e. federal matching funds for the states) by $20 billion over the next 5 years and $60 billion over the next decade. While full details of these reductions are not available yet, they appear to target reforms aimed at curbing methods that states have used to maximize federal matching funds..."  
  

Mental Health Care In Texas Is “Broken,” Group Says  KWTX story - "The Mental Health Association in Texas called on state legislators Tuesday to restore millions of dollars cut from mental health funding in 2003, saying mental illness is costing the state as much as $16.6 billion a year." See also the Association's report, Turning the Corner (Adobe Acrobat format) - " Texas is turning the corner, and we have it within our reach to combine our economic opportunity with our moral obligation. Will we do the right thing? Or will Texans with mental illness continue to face closed doors in their quest for care? State government's ability to reflect our common values and most positive impulses is at stake. Surely, in a land with such wide horizons, where independence is so prized and fairness so fundamental, we can find the will to include everyone as we turn the corner toward a future of progress and prosperity." See also the related story from News 8 Austin, Cuts to mental health services cost billions in long run.  
  

Mental-health parity: Is it justified? (Washington) A brief introduction in the Seattle Times - "State lawmakers are weighing legislation this session that would require health insurance to cover psychiatric disorders on an equal basis with other illnesses..." - and two opposing points of view, Pro: End discrimination against the mentally ill and Con: Why waste money, endanger civil liberties?.