Thursday, May 05, 2005

Characteristics of the Uninsured: A View from the States A 49 page report in Adobe Acrobat format from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation - " This report reviews state-level data about adults who work but do not have health insurance coverage. More than 20 million working adults do not have health care coverage, according to an analysis of 2003 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In eight states, at least one in five working adults is uninsured. In 39 other states, at least one working adult in every 10 does not have health care coverage." See also the related press release.  
  

Slash and Burn Budget Clears Congress Update from the Bazelon Center on Mental Health Law - "... Congress approved its budget resolution, which sets spending guidelines for fiscal year 2006. Its approval clears the way for billions in cuts to the Medicaid program, the single most significant source of public financing for mental health services, and for freezing spending on other domestic discretionary programs, including mental health programs, for three years. ... Among the cuts the President proposed were several that would hurt people with mental illnesses who rely on the public mental health system. In particular, significant cuts to targeted case management services were included. Targeted case management is an important community-based Medicaid service for children who require wraparound services to help them avoid school failure, contact with juvenile justice authorities and other adverse outcomes. For adults, it is equally vital in linking them to a range of critical support services, such as housing and employment."  
  

Uphold Medicaid benefits Opinion column in the Miami Herald by Steve Leifman, associate administrative judge and chair of the 11th Judicial Circuit Mental Health Committee - "...the Legislature this year announced its intention to repeal the mental-health exemption for Medicaid enrollees. This means that access to effective and trusted medications for Floridians who suffer from serious mental illnesses are in jeopardy. In effect, the Legislature is making a medical, not financial, decision for the tens of thousands of people who rely on access to the newer medications. ... The truth is that when considered against hospitalization and crisis-oriented services, medications are among the least expensive forms of treatment for mental illnesses. Furthermore, requiring physicians to prescribe medication based on cost-effectiveness as opposed to clinical-efficacy raises serious questions about professional ethics and standards of practice. To disavow that access to medication and services are among the most potent solutions to the social problems we face related to untreated mental illnesses is to disregard many lessons learned at tragic, irreversible costs. In recent years, the Legislature has made some positive strides in reversing the criminalization of mental illness. This proposal, unfortunately, will be a major setback."  
  

Judge Critical of D.C. Mental Health Care Washington Post story - "Ongoing problems with District mental health services raise 'serious public safety concerns' as well as questions about whether the city is meeting its legal obligation to help the mentally ill, according to D.C. Superior Court Chief Judge Rufus G. King III. King's criticism of the D.C. Department of Mental Health is contained in a March 29 letter to U.S. District Chief Judge Thomas F. Hogan, who is overseeing the mental health system's efforts to emerge from three decades of court intervention. Superior Court Chief Judge Rufus G. King III said the city may be putting the public at risk with inadequate treatment of the mentally ill. King wrote that the agency's problems in paying doctors have caused disruptions in court-ordered mental health evaluations of children in juvenile and neglect cases." [Viewing Washington Post stories requires registration, which is free.]