Monday, December 08, 2003

African Americans’ Views On Health Policy: Implications For The 2004 Elections
Report published in Health Policy - " In the competition for African American voters in the 2004 elections, health policy is likely to be an important issue. Blacks are about twice as likely as whites to say that health care issues are important in their vote choice. Using national survey data, this paper shows that candidates will have to have well-developed proposals on the uninsured, protecting Medicaid, aiding neighborhood health centers, and expanding funding for AIDS, to appeal to black voters. However, in responding to black voters, candidates will have to be careful not to alienate white voters by proposing health policies that involve sizable increases in taxes or government regulation." You can also view the full report online and download an Adobe Acrobat version.  
  

States' 3-year budget crisis eases, but challenges ahead
Philadelphia Enquirer story - "The three-year fiscal crisis in state governments across the nation - which forced tax increases, spending cuts, and political upheaval that culminated in the dramatic recall of California's governor - is bottoming out. The accelerating national economy helped lift state fortunes in September as tax revenues rose 5.9 percent, according to a report released yesterday by the National Governors Association and the National Association of State Budget Officers. Revenue increased in all but Delaware and seven other states. All 50 predict rising revenues next year..." See also the press release State Budgets Not Out of the Woods Yet at the National Governors Association web site - and the full report, The Fiscal Survey of States (Adobe Acrobat format).  
  

Substance Abuse Patients Pay More
Story at About.com's mental health section - " A survey of 434 managed care plans in 60 market areas found that patients receiving substance abuse and mental health services often had to make a higher copayment or pay a higher share of allowed charges than did patients receiving general medical care. Researchers from Brandeis University found that at least 30 percent of the managed care service providers surveyed imposed higher cost sharing requirements for outpatient substance abuse and mental health treatment than for medical services."  
  

Ohio mental health care bill sparks controversy
Marietta Times article - " A vote is scheduled Wednesday on an Ohio House bill that would require insurance companies to provide coverage equally for mental health and other medical services. Passage of the mental health parity bill would mean such health benefits would be considered basic health care coverage and included in nearly all policies. ..."  
  

Mental Health Advocates Honor Maine Senator Susan Collins
Ascribe Newswire press release - "The Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law, the nation's leading legal advocacy group for adults and children with mental disabilities, today honored Senator Susan Collins (Republican, Maine) for her efforts to address serious problems in the nation's children's mental health system. 'This year, Senator Collins has helped lead the charge to improve children's mental health,' Robert Bernstein, executive director at the Bazelon Center, told more than 150 people gathered to honor the Senator at a Washington luncheon today. Because mental health services for children are in short supply and are often not covered by private insurance, families face tremendous difficulties getting help. When they cannot otherwise access the assistance their child needs, a shockingly large number of parents turn to the state, relinquishing custody of their children to obtain state-funded mental health services..."  
  

Counties want say in mental-health programs (Idaho)
Idaho Statesman story - "A group of county leaders is hoping to convince the Legislature to start changing the way mental health services are delivered in Idaho. Right now, the decisions are coming from Washington, D.C., and Boise, but the counties that end up covering much of the cost aren´t involved at all. By revamping seven committees around the state — and giving them real power to make decisions — the state could bring state Health and Welfare workers, physicians and providers, and the local policy makers together, Idaho Association of Counties staffer Tony Poinelli said..."  
  

Battle for control of mental health agency in Wayne County stalls reform (Michigan)
Detroit News story - "... At a time of crisis in the care of mentally ill and developmentally disabled people, a battle for control of the troubled, $530-million Detroit-Wayne County Community Mental Health Agency is thwarting reform efforts, officials and observers say. Consumers like Meadows are left adrift, without a clear picture of what the future holds, and services remain inadequate. The work of the Detroit-Wayne County Community Mental Health Board has ground to a halt while members appointed by the city boycott meetings. And what was to be a national search for a new director of the agency has turned into a fight over County Executive Robert Ficano's suspension of the interim director, Patricia Kukula."  
  

Alaska Gets $3.5 Million From SAMHSA For Mental Health Treatment
US Medicine press release - "The Department of Health and Human Resource will give the state of Alaska nearly $3.5 million over five years to help the state to provide coordinated and integrated treatment services to persons suffering from both mental health disorders and substance abuse problems. The grant is part of new grants that the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is giving to encourage states to provide comprehensive treatment to persons who have a substance abuse disorder and at least one mental disorder. Other states that received grants in varying amounts are Texas, Pennsylvania, Hawaii, Missouri, Arkansas and Louisiana."  
  

Wyatt mental health suit ends (Alabama)
Birmingham News story - "The federal lawsuit that established the rights of mental patients to humane treatment in Alabama and across the nation ended Friday, 33 years after it began. With Ricky Wyatt, the man in whose name the suit was filed in 1970, present in the courtroom, U.S. District Judge Myron Thompson said he will terminate the suit because the state has met the standards of mental health care set out in a 2000 settlement. But the legacy of the Wyatt case is much more far-reaching. The standards it set included the most basic, that living conditions should be humane and that people deserve treatment..."