Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Obama Signs Cure Bill: Here's what's in it for mentally ill

The CURE bill was signed by President Obama on Dec. 13.  Following are Mental Illness provisions 

SUBTITLE A— Leadership


Sec. 6001. Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use
Establishes an Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use (Assistant Secretary) to head the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). The authorities of the existing SAMHSA Administrator are transferred to the Assistant Secretary.

Sec. 6002. Strengthening the Leadership of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

       Requires the Assistant Secretary to:
o   Maintain a system to disseminate research findings and evidence-based practices to service providers to improve treatment and prevention services and incorporate these findings into SAMHSA programs;
o   Ensure that grants are subject to performance and outcome evaluations and that center directors consistently document the grant process and conduct ongoing oversight of grantees;
o   Consult with stakeholders to improve community-based and other mental health services, including adults with a serious mental illness (SMI), and children with a serious emotional disturbance (SED);
o   Collaborate with other federal departments, including the Departments of Defense (DOD), Veterans Affairs (VA), Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and Labor (DOL) to improve care for veterans and service members, and support programs to address chronic homelessness; and
o   Work with stakeholders to improve the recruitment and retention of mental health and substance use disorder professionals.