Governor’s Budget, New Name for Waiver Proposal,
CBHA Highlighted by OPEN Minds and KVIE, and More!
Greetings Colleagues!
Can you believe that January is coming to an end already? Indeed, things are back in full swing since Session commenced, and CBHA is hard at work on behalf of our members. We are thrilled to have partnered with several allied organizations on policy letters to DHCS, and we are currently working with organizations to craft our budget and legislative proposals for 2020, to be introduced in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for how you can partner and provide support for our proposals.
Budget Overview
Many of you may have seen our comments on the Governor’s budget proposal released two weeks ago. Governor Newsom once again focused on the needs within the behavioral health arena in his projected $222 billion budget. In his almost three-hour briefing, he focused on various topics of import, including investments in education, housing, transforming Medi-Cal, and healthcare. The Governor began by pointing out that he has worked for months on this budget, which he takes very seriously, and that the budget acts as a “review of priorities” for the Administration.
Newsom proudly pointed out the state's record surpluses and the ability to pay down debts via the General Fund reserves. He added, California “leads the nation” in several areas, including having leaders in higher education, science, and the highest number of Nobel Laureates. Newsom said that Californians have innovation “running through our brains and veins.” He warned, “The past does not equal the future… though we have had 11 years of economic growth, a slowing down of economic growth is occurring,” but there are still some areas the state is falling short.
High level behavioral health budget allocations include:
- Behavioral Health Task Force. The Health and Human Services Agency will create a task force comprised of state and community level stakeholders. The mission is to review existing policies and programs to improve care and coordinate system transformation efforts as it relates to the impacts of mental illness and substance use disorders in communities.
