Tuesday, May 03, 2005

Millionaires And Mental Health: Proposition 63 In California Article in Health Affairs - "In November 2004 California passed Proposition 63, a landmark piece of mental health and fiscal legislation. This initiative places a 1 percent tax on adjusted gross income over $1 million, affecting about 30,000 taxpayers and raising $1.8 billion (a 31 percent increase) in new revenues over the first three years to support county-operated mental health systems. Our analysis suggests that Proposition 63 passed with strong support from Democrats, urban dwellers, and social workers and in counties with high rates of homelessness. Proposition 63 faces challenges in implementation and provides unprecedented opportunities for transformation and change. California passed Proposition 63, a landmark piece of mental health and fiscal legislation, in the November 2004 election. California has a long history of using the initiative process to pass laws that are often controversial and influence the rest of the nation." Also available in Acrobat format (PDF).  
  

Sponsors of mental health bill to testify (Ohio) Advertiser Tribune story - "The push for a mental health parity law in the state of Ohio begins in earnest today as the primary sponsor of Senate Bill 116, Sen. Bob Spada (R-Pepper Pike), and the sponsor of House Bill 180, its companion legislation, Rep. Jon Peterson (R-Delaware), are scheduled to begin testimony today in front of the Senate Insurance Committee. These two bills are nearly exact copies of the legislation put forth by former representative Lynn Olman in 2004, as House Bill 225. HB 225 passed through the House of Representatives in February 2004, but was blocked from reaching the Senate floor for a vote in December 2004. The new legislation, SB 116, was initiated April 1 by Senator Spada, while its companion, HB 180, was initiated by Peterson on April 5 in the midst of a massive support rally held by mental health advocates in Columbus."  
  

Mental health clinic closing (Maine) Portland Press Herald story - "About 400 of Portland's most troubled and vulnerable residents will lose their psychiatric services if a financially strapped clinic closes next month as planned. The state expects other agencies will take on clients of the Portland Help Center, many of whom are homeless and impoverished. But officials of the Spurwink agency, which operates the mental health clinic, worry that other organizations also don't have enough state funding to manage such a demanding population."  
  

Serious Psychiatric Impact of Marijuana Use Evident in Growing Body of Research  PR Newswire press release - "The Nation's Drug Czar, John P. Walters, and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Administrator, Charles G. Curie, joined with scientists and experts from the leading mental health organizations today to alert parents about the danger marijuana poses to their teens' mental health. ... A number of prominent studies have recently identified a direct link between marijuana use and increased risk of mental health problems. Recent research makes a stronger case that cannabis smoking itself is a causal agent in psychiatric symptoms, particularly schizophrenia. During the past three years, these studies have strengthened that association and further found that the age when marijuana is first smoked is a crucial risk factor in later development of mental health problems."