Latest California Healthline Stories
Sonoma Center Facing State Sanctions
The California Department of Public Health took a major step this week toward decertifying and revoking the license of the intermediate care facility at Sonoma Developmental Center.
The Sonoma facility, which serves 290 people with intellectual disabilities, is expected to appeal the state action.
The original survey in July by the Department of Public Health found 57 deficiencies, and four instances of immediate jeopardy to residents. The facility had two three-month periods to correct those problems. According to CDPH officials, time is up.
Uninsured Eligible for Mental Health Services
When major portions of the Affordable Care Act are implemented in 2014, almost all of the 500,000 uninsured Californians who were previously identified as being in need of mental health services will be eligible for those services, either through Medi-Cal expansion or the exchange, according to a study released yesterday by the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research.
“Last year we did a mental health report, and what we found is there are 500,000 or so people in California who are uninsured and in need of mental health services, so this year we wanted to see who among them would be eligible for coverage under the Affordable Care Act,” said Imelda Padilla-Frausto, lead author of the report released yesterday.
“We found about half of them would be eligible through expansion, and another 42% through the exchange,” Padilla-Frausto said. “That’s practically everyone. It’s a huge improvement for those adults who don’t have insurance coverage.”
Saving Money, Lives with Mental Health Program
A new study by the UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities suggests an intensive and integrated mental health program called Full Service Partnerships is likely to save the state money at a return rate of $1.27 for every dollar spent.
The FSP program is designed to care for individuals with serious mental illness by taking a holistic approach to their care, according to Renay Bradley, chief of research and evaluation at the UCLA center.
“The idea is, if you have individuals who are particularly challenged, such as homeless individuals or just people who need a lot of assistance, they’re funneled into FSPs,” Bradley said. “And they do whatever it takes to get them to a decent level of functioning.”
New Plan’s Holistic Approach to Mental Illness in Los Angeles
A new plan to provide mental health and medical coverage in Los Angeles County is taking a holistic approach to dealing with the common “tri-morbidity” — medical problems, mental illness and addiction.
Mental Health, Substance Abuse Treatment Changing
New guidelines in the Affordable Care Act and new responsibilities for county governments mean significant changes ahead for mental health care and substance abuse treatment in California.
Oversight Commission: ‘Descriptions Incomplete’
A state oversight commission found little to no substance in reports of programmatic misconduct in its initial report released yesterday on concerns raised over compliance with Mental Health Services Act program in California.
“Basically, in the programs that were mentioned, the descriptions of those programs were incomplete,” said Jennifer Whitney, chief of communications for the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission. “And that painted a very different picture of the programs.”
Several recent news reports questioned 13 different programmatic elements that supposedly used MHSA funds for such things as yoga classes and a sweat lodge.
Laura’s Law Advocate Objects to Plan
The Assembly Committee on Health on Tuesday approved a proposal designed to change the way some counties handle people who are having a mental health crisis.
“Consumers, mental health professionals, law enforcement and others are working side-by-side developing ways to de-escalate crisis situations, while reaching out to consumers and providing much-needed mental health services,” said Wesley Chesbro (D-Arcata), author of AB 2134.
“This bill simply tells counties to have a best practice in place for crisis response before proceeding with the countywide involuntary treatment program,” Chesbro said. “It’s that simple.”
Mental Health Recurring Theme at Conference
Starting with former President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, who set the tone on the first day, mental health care and its role in the evolving health care system emerged as a recurring theme last week at the Association of Health Care Journalists’ annual conference in Atlanta.
Bill Would Expand Clinics’ Hiring Options for Mental Health Care Providers
Palm Springs has a problem that is shared in rural communities across California, according to J.M. Evosevich, a marriage and family therapist from Palm Springs who is a past president of the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists. Evosevich said at a recent Assembly hearing that clinics throughout rural California have a problem: They can’t find enough social workers to take care of people’s mental health needs.
“There’s a waiting list for people that need mental health care, and they can’t provide it because they don’t have the [mental health] providers,” Evosevich said. “We are uniquely qualified to deal with marriage and family therapies. And those services are lacking in our area.”
AB 1785 by Bonnie Lowenthal (D-Long Beach) aims to change. The bill came before the Assembly Committee on Health last week.
Counties, EDs Could Benefit from Pilot Project
California’s emergency psychiatric demonstration project, approved this week by CMS, may help counties deal with financial stress from a payment system half a century old.
“This is a great opportunity for California to participate in a demonstration that will help ensure patients receive appropriate, high-quality care when they need it most,” Norman Williams of the DHCS said. The project will provide “reimbursement to private psychiatric hospitals for certain services for which Medicaid reimbursement has historically been unavailable,” Williams said.
That is good news for counties, crowded hospital emergency departments and patients with acute psychiatric problems, according to Patricia Ryan, executive director of the California Mental Health Directors Association.