Advancing Public Policies for people with Mental Illness, Substance Use Disorder and/or Intellectual/Developmental Disabilities
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Mental Health Partners Launch New Crisis Response Initiative During Coronavirus Pandemic
According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, almost 1 in 5 Americans experience mental health concerns each year, while more than 100 die by suicide every day. COVID-19 crisis precautions introduced such as social distancing and self-isolation, coupled with the fear of medical emergencies and growing anxiety about the prolonged nature of the crisis, could amplify the number of people suffering from mental health concerns across the US. With
Qualtrics
reporting that 41.6% of the population have seen a decrease in their mental wellness since the COVID-19 outbreak, an innovative website resource aims to help alleviate their suffering.
Read more
here
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UPCOMING EVENTS &
TRAININGS
Better Together: Health and HMIS Data, Best Practices and Examples from the Field
May 4, 3 - 4 pm, HUD Exchange
Using PSYCKES Quality Indicator Reports
May 5, 10 - 11 am, OMH
May 6, 12 - 1 pm, PsychU
Financial Hope, Financial Shame and Suicide
May 7, 12 - 1 pm, Suicide Prevention Center of New York State
Growing Medication Assisted Treatment Programs in a Value Based Contracting World
May 7, 1 - 2 pm, Integrated Addiction Medicine
May 12, 12 - 1 pm, PsychU
COVID-19: Remapping the Healthcare Privacy Landscape
May 12, 4 - 5 pm, Manatt Health
Best Practices for Drug Courts: Implementing Effective Programming for People with Methamphetamine Use Disorder
May 13, 2:30 - 4 pm, SAMHSA's GAINS Center
PSYCKES Mobile App for iPhones & iPads
May 14, 12 - 1 pm, OMH
May 20, 1 - 2:30 pm, OMH
May 27, 3 - 4 pm, NAADAC
Using PSYCKES Recipient Search
May 28, 10 - 11 am, OMH
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MAY 2020
Executive Committee Meeting
Developmental Disabilities Committee Meeting
Children & Families Committee Meeting
May 19: 11:30 am - 1 pm, GTM
CLMHD Full Membership Call
May 20: 9 - 11:30 am, GTM
CLMHD Office Closed - Memorial Day
May 25
Contact CLMHD for all Call In and Go To Meeting information, 518.462.9422
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CMS Issues Second Round of Sweeping Changes to Support U.S. Healthcare System During COVID-19 Pandemic
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services yesterday issued another round of sweeping regulatory waivers and rule changes to deliver expanded care to the nation's seniors and provide flexibility to the healthcare system as America reopens. These changes include making it easier for Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries to get tested for COVID-19 and continuing CMS's efforts to further expand beneficiaries' access to telehealth services.
CMS's goals during the pandemic are to 1) expand the healthcare workforce by removing barriers for physicians, nurses, and other clinicians to be readily hired from the local community or other states; 2) ensure that local hospitals and health systems have the capacity to handle COVID-19 patients through temporary expansion sites; 3) increase access to telehealth for Medicare patients so they can get care from their physicians and other clinicians while staying safely at home; 4) expand at-home and community-based testing to minimize transmission of COVID-19 among Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries; and 5) put patients over paperwork by giving providers, healthcare facilities, Medicare Advantage and Part D plans, and states temporary relief from many reporting and audit requirements so they can focus on patient care. Read more here.
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New York State Division of the Budget Announces Release of the FY 2021 Enacted State Budget Financial Plan - Projects $13.3 Billion Shortfall
The New York State Division of the Budget announced today the
FY 2021 Enacted State Budget Financial Plan
, which projects a $13.3 billion shortfall, or 14%, in revenue from the Executive Budget Forecast released in January and estimates a $61 billion decline through FY 2024 as a direct consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, in the absence of Federal assistance, initial budget control actions outlined in the Financial Plan will reduce spending by $10.1 billion from the Executive Budget. This represents a $7.3 billion reduction in state spending from FY 2020 levels.
Released with the Financial Plan is an
assessment of the pandemic's impact on the New York State economy developed by Boston Consulting Group at the State's request. Prior to March 2020, under Governor Cuomo's leadership, New York enjoyed a decade of prosperity. During that decade, 1.3 million jobs were created - a 20% increase in private sector employment - to reach a record high as unemployment dropped from 8.9% to 3.7% and wages rose by 47%. However, now, as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, New York State's economy will lose $243 billion over the course of the full recovery, the equivalent of 14% of the State's Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The COVID-19 recession will be deeper and the recovery longer than the 2008 Great Recession and the recession that followed the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2011. Read more
here.
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Bipartisan Group of Lawmakers Seeks COVID-19 Mental Health Funds
A bipartisan group of lawmakers is calling, in a letter provided first to CQ Roll Call, for an emergency infusion of mental health and addiction funding to be added to the next COVID-19 economic stimulus package.
The 76 lawmakers from both chambers wrote to House and Senate leaders Wednesday requesting at least $35.8 billion for behavioral health in the next legislative package.
Lawmakers are working on an agreement on the fifth piece of major legislation to address the health and economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The writers said this money would be used for evidence-based practices and that a large portion should be set aside for behavioral health organizations that accept Medicaid and perform services for other underserved populations. Read more
here.
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UnitedHealth's Optum Is In Advanced Talks to Acquire Remote Mental Health Provider AbleTo for About $470 Million
UnitedHealth Group's
Optum is in advanced talks to acquire virtual therapy provider AbleTo for about $470 million, according to people familiar with the deal, at a time when telehealth is more in demand than ever.
The transaction would value AbleTo, a 12-year-old company based in New York, at about 10 times forward revenue, said the people, who asked not to be named because the deal hasn't closed and terms could still change. Optum, the division of insurer UnitedHealth that provides technology-enabled services, has been growing through acquisitions, including the purchase of DaVita Medical Group for almost $5 billion and patient-monitoring start-up Vivify Health.
Like other providers of remote health s
ervices, particularly in the area of mental health, AbleTo is seeing increased demand as people across the country deal with the medical and economic fallout of Covid-19. Read more here.
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What Is Happening With Crisis Services In The Current Crisis?
As health and human service organizations continue to grapple with many of the same concerns expressed by hospital staff and medical professionals on the frontlines, the pandemic has also shed light on a new set of challenges for crisis service provider organizations-including mobile crisis teams, residential programs, and call centers. There are significant discrepancies in utilization and delivery of services across the crisis continuum of care. Crisis call centers are reporting an uptick in utilization. Telehealth has allowed mobile crisis teams to continue to connect with individuals in crisis through first responders-though not without difficulty of acquiring the same quality of information as meeting face-to-face. But for crisis residential programs, many have decreased their bed capacity with some programs forced to suspend services altogether. These were data shared by Travis Atkinson, behavioral health crisis systems expert at TBD Solutions, and Phil Evans, chief executive officer of ProtoCall Services.
Crisis Call Centers For crisis call centers, the majority-or 49%-of respondents reported an increase in call volume, while 26% reported a decrease and 25% reported no change. In addition to the increase in referrals, internal challenges differed significantly from other crisis services. Read more here.
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