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LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES
2007 ACL BUDGET/LEGISLATIVE PRIORITIES
COST OF LIVING INCREASE
FULLY FUND THE PROMISED COLA AND MAKE IT PERMANENT!
PRESERVE EXISTING RESIDENTIAL PROGRAMS
REFORM EXISTING PROGRAMS
PLANNING & DEVELOPMENT
REFORM EXISTING PROGRAMS
- Mandate that the State Office of Mental Health reform outdated programs so that the services provided meet the needs of the consumers.
- Hold hearings on the funding of, use of, and demands placed on residential programs.
- Create a mechanism to develop recommendations, e.g., a Governor’s workgroup consisting of providers, families, consumers, local government and OMH.
- State and Local governments use a centralized intake system called Single Point of Access (SPOA) to insure that providers take the most at risk and the highest need clients in the system; HOWEVER, they have done NOTHING to modify the programs so that providers can accommodate these higher demand clients.
- Licensed programs were developed in 1984 for clients with relatively low needs.
- Staffing was minimal to meet the minimal needs of the clients at the time.
- Staffing has not changed in over 20 years.
- Reimbursement rates have not kept up with inflation.
- Clients’ needs are far more complex.
- Expectations for outcomes have risen.
- Regulatory oversight has gotten more rigorous.
- There is a large system of not-for-profit owned and operated community residences (a.k.a. group homes) that are currently funded to serve low need consumers that were identified in 1984. Consumer needs have increased considerably since then. Some of these programs should be converted to serve specialized populations, including very high need consumers who use a disproportionate share of high cost services, as long as the staffing and other resources are provided.
- For example, the state could convert some existing programs to create:
- Crisis beds to avoid use of high cost hospitals,
- Step down beds so that people can be discharged sooner from high cost hospitals,
- Transition beds for young adults so that they don’t flounder when they age out of foster care or other institutional systems for adolescents,
- Geriatric clients who need a high level of care, keeping them out of nursing homes.
- Clients have become empowered to express their opinions and they have told us that they need changes in the old service models in order for them to agree to live in them.
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