Community
Services
Second
Year COLA continues to be funded for mental health programs
(estimated 2.5% at a cost of $30 million dollars across all
human service areas). Budget language states, “Funding
and management strategies for voluntary-operated community based
service systems needs to balance expansion efforts with ongoing
infrastructure needs and address staff recruitment and retention
issues and other inflationary pressures.”
Housing
1000
new supported housing beds ($6 million this year, annualized to
$12.1 million).
1000
new congregate beds ($200 million in capital costs).
Continued
support for NY/NY III ($12.9 million) to meet the housing needs
of homeless individuals, including those with psychiatric disabilities.
New
Community Residence improvement initiatives for both adult and
child CR beds for operating expenses and the third year of a three-year
increase in stipends for supported housing ($19 million).
Sexual Offenders
$46
million to house sexual offenders in existing OMH Facilities (we
will get additional specifics on this in the coming days).
Medications
Proposal
to removal the exemption on the Preferred Drug Program for anti-depressants
(atypical anti-psychotics continue to be exempt).
The
Medicaid wrap-around benefit continues for mental health, HIV/AIDS
and organ transplant drugs to ensure access to these medication
for dual eligible individuals.
Funding for the PSYCKES program to improve outpatient psychiatric
prescribing practices and improve medication management which
saves the state ($4.3 million).
Prison Mental Health Services
Prison
mental health service expansion of $2 million.
Children’s Services
Increased
Slots for Home and Community Based Waivers---$1.2 million annualized
to $4.7 million for 180 new slots bringing the total to 1620.
Continues funding support for Child and Family Clinic Plus ($21.5
million).
Child Health Plus will expand it’s eligibility from 250
percent to 400 percent of the Federal Poverty Level, allowing
400,000 uninsured children to join the program.
Geriatric Mental Health Act
No
additional funding for Geriatric Mental Health Act demonstration
projects, but continues existing $2 million.
Suicide Prevention
No
additional funding for Suicide Prevention programs, but continues
existing $1.5 million.
Facility Closures
Though
there are no proposed facility closures in the budget. There is
language indicating that this is something the administration
will be reviewing in the future. To quote from the budget narrative,
“Despite significant reductions in inpatient capacity, which
allowed for reinvestment of resources into the community, the
current institutional service system now being operated by OMH
needs to be right-sized, in order to be more cost effective and
better meet regional needs.”
Timothy’s Law
"The
Executive Budget also includes a $100 million General Fund appropriation
for the Department to finance provisions of "Timothy's Law"
which was enacted in late 2006. Under this statute's provisions,
on or after January 1, 2007, the State is required to fully reimburse
employers with 50 or fewer employees for the costs associated
with providing broad-based mental health insurance coverage."
