MENTAL ILLNESS POLICY ORG.

From: "Mental Illness Policy Org" <office@mentalillnesspolicy.org>
Subject: Media for Kendra's Law and Against OMH
Date: May 31st 2011

Friends

Here's an update on the efforts to pass the bill to improve Kendra's Law so more people who need treatment can get it. See bill summary:

http://mentalillnesspolicy.org/kendras-law/improvements2011bill.html

There is less than one month left in the legislative session. The bills (S4881/A6987) are still stuck in the Senate and Assembly Mental Health Committees.

Many media outlets have run editorials urging the mental health committees to act. Many family members of people with mental illness have written op-eds urging the legislature to pass the bills.

On the other side, the NYS Office of Mental Health (OMH) and NYRAPRS, the OMH funded trade association for programs that provide voluntary services continue to oppose the legislation because it would require them to serve people with serious mental illness.

The Legislative Gazette did an article on Kendra's Law that reported on some of this:

http://www.legislativegazette.com/Articles-c-2011-05-26-77682.113122-Kendras-Law-expansion-plan-reignites-dispute.html

In the Legislative Gazette, Harvey Rosenthal of NYAPRS states the law "punishes" patients. An unusual argument since a new study says it cuts down arrest for violent offenses by 8.6 fold and 81% of consumers in program said it helped. He also states that "more research" is needed since all the research so far points to the fact it works.

See research:

http://mentalillnesspolicy.org/kendras-law/research/kendras-law-studies.html

It is apparent that NYAPRS is going to continue to stand against consumers and for providers on this issue.

Staten Island Advance came out with a strong editorial endorsing the improvement bill.

http://www.silive.com/opinion/editorials/index.ssf/2011/05/reform_kendras_law_now.html

Buffalo News did one of the best editorials and noted that the bill does not make Kendra's Law permanent, so legislature can look at this as a trial. See here:.

http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial-page/buffalo-news-editorials/article432893.ece

OMH Commissioner Michael Hogan, remains NYS's biggest impediment to improving care for the seriously ill. He has admitted his goal is to move OMH away from treatment of serious mental illness and towards mental "health"/

He believes bad grades, unhappy relations with parents, poverty, death in the family, and inadequate housing make people sad and therefore by funding programs to help people get better grades, improve relationships with parents, get jobs and better housing, he is improving mental health. To fund these programs he recently announced he is closing psychiatric hospital beds for the seriously ill, closing comprehensive psychiatric emergency room programs (CPEPs) for the seriously mentally ill, and opposing improving Kendra’s Law to help the seriously ill.

He wrpte maintains “treatments that are not voluntarily accepted are not likely to be effective” in spite of mountains of OMH research to the contrary.

His current position is that with movement to Behavioral Healthcare Organizations, BHOs will do more outreach and therefore improving Kendra’s Law is not needed. This is disingenuous at best and most likely, deadly.

Up to 40% of people with schiz have anosognosia, they don't know they are sick (or think they are God/Jesus/Satan/whoever) and therefore won't accept voluntary treatment. BHOs won't reach them.

BHOs do not have a mandate to evaluate mentally ill prisoners being discharged from jails and prisons or being discharged after involuntary confinement. This bill provides for that.

The BHOs have a financial disincentive to take on high-needs patients, so naturally they wont.

Further, AOT is only for those who don't voluntarily accept treatment. So you need outreach to reach voluntary patients and AOT for the others.

Nonetheless, Hogan continues to position BHOs (as he positioned the failed Care Monitoring Initiative) as an alternative to AOT.

NAMINYS bravely adopted a policy strongly endorsing the bill and urging their members to call their legislators.

http://www.naminys.org/advocacy/advocacy-information

So that’s where we are. You may want to contact your own legislator to let him or her know where you stand. Thank you. Feel free to share.

Please call 518 455 4218 and ask to be connected to your assembly member (they will tell you who it is at that number). Ask them to co-sponsor A 6987.

DJ
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Following is info for new subscribers only

Pat Scimone wrote a terrific op-ed in the New York Post. She is the brother of Thomas. Thomas was allowed to exercise his right to go off treatment. He acted out and was shot by police. He is dead. Pat shows how the improvements to Kendra's Law might have kept her brother alive. Read his story here: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/opinion/opedcolumnists/for_families_sake_fix_kendra_law_ePITirAXUcQunfZYIlDN5I?CMP=OTC-rss&FEEDNAME=

Vanessa Bellucci wrote a very powerful op-ed in favor of making the improvements in Kendra’s Law that ran in Gannett Papers. Her brother Eric, was left untreated, free to exercise his right to go off treatment. He murdered both their parents as a result of his illness. Eric is now in jail with no civil liberties at all. Read his story here http://www.lohud.com/article/20110521/OPINION/105210313/1076/OPINION01/Kendra+'s%20Law%20loopholes%20must%20be%20closed

My own op-ed appeared in the Daily News. It's not as good as the ones above, but you can read it here: http://www.nydailynews.com/opinions/2011/05/19/2011-05-19_still_mentally_ill_and_still_dangerous_courtordered_treatment_for_the_disturbed_.html

Another one was in City Journal:
http://mentalillnesspolicy.org/media/bestmedia/Manhattan-Institute.html