If Prop 63/MHSA funds were spent as legislatively required, no new funds would be needed. MHSA already specifically earmarked funds for this. MHSA Sec. 5813.5 (f) says:
Unbiased information on serious mental illness (not "mental health") for media and policymakers. Includes info on violence and mental illness, involuntary treatment, involuntary commitment, assisted outpatient treatment, AOT, Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity, NGRI
Showing posts with label MHSOAC. Show all posts
Showing posts with label MHSOAC. Show all posts
Friday, December 20, 2013
Darrell Steinberg asks Californians to pay twice for same program. Fails Mentally Ill
On December 19, California Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg asked for more money for Mentally Ill Offender Crime Reduction Grants.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
California's Prop 63/Mental Health Services Act Fails Seriously Mentally Ill
In 2004, Californians altruistically passed a 1% tax on millionaires specifically to fund services for people with serious mental illness. As a result of reports that the funds were not reaching people with serious mental illness Mental Illness Policy Org. conducted a study and found many of the complaints to be true. Below is a summary of our report released August 15, 2013. The full report is here Our op-ed in San Diego Union Tribune is here. We shared our concerns with the California State Auditor.
California’s
Mental Health Service Act:
A Ten
Year $10 Billion Bait and Switch
An
investigation by Mental Illness Policy Org and Individual Californians
California’s
Mental Health Service Act:
A Ten
Year $10 Billion Bait and Switch
An
investigation by Mental Illness Policy Org and Individual Californians
August 15, 2013
Background
In November, 2004 California voters enacted a 1% tax on millionaires (Prop 63) to establish the Mental
Health Services Act (MHSA) fund solely to help people with serious mental illnesses.[1] $10
billion has been raised since inception. Voters also created a Mental Health
Services Oversight and Accountability Commission (MHSOAC a/k/a “Oversight
Commission”) to see the program stuck to its purpose of helping people with
serious mental illness.
Primary Findings
Many people with serious mental
illness are receiving critical treatment as a result of Prop 63 but billions
are being diverted to other purposes:
- $1-2 Billion of Prevention and Early Intervention (PEI) Funds was intentionally diverted to social service programs masquerading as mental illness programs or falsely claim they prevent serious mental illness.
- ·$2.5 billion of the “Full Service Partnership (FSP) funds were spent without oversight of whether the recipients had schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or the other serious mental illnesses that made them eligible for MHSA funds.
- $23 million went to organizations directly associated with Oversight Commissioners.
- $11 million is going to PR firms that make the Oversight Commissioners look good and hide the failure of MHSA to accomplish its mission
- $9 million is going to organizations working prevent the seriously ill from receiving treatment until after they become violent.
- ·Up to $32 million was diverted to TV shows, radio shows, PSAs and other initiatives designed to reach the public without mental illness. Some feature the Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg
Additional Findings
Friday, September 14, 2012
CA Mental Health Services Act (MHSA/Prop 63) Insider Dealing
Over $16 million in Prop 63/MHSA funds is being diverted to organizations
associated with Oversight Commissioners
"Insider Dealing in MHSA Funds"
September 10, 2012
SummaryCalifornia's Mental Health Services Act is a good and important program that funds services for people with serious mental illness. But Mental Illness Policy Org (MIPO) found that over $16 million in Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) funds are going to organizations currently or formerly run by those responsible for oversight of the expenditures. This is likely a violation of California’s conflict-of-interest laws and raises serious questions about whether MHSA funds are being spent appropriately. The Associated Press in “California Mental Health Spending Often Bypasses Mentally Ill” and numerous op-eds have previously reported on the diversion of other MHSA funds to projects that do not serve people “with serious mental illness"..Rose King filed a whistleblower complaint. This is the first report on insider dealing.
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
California Mental Health Services Act Fails to Focus on Serious Mental Illness
The chair of the California Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission (MHSOAC) wrote an op-ed in Capital Weekly criticizing families of people with severe mental illness who criticize how Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) funds are spent. He claims the program is working well. But it's not. For one, the oversight committee itself is diverting MHSA funds meant to help people with severe mental illness to other causes. In their case, it's to hire a PR firm to further the oversight committee's claim that all is well. How does hiring a PR firm help people with severe mental illness? Is that why taxpayers voted to tax themselves? They felt a dearth of PR firms? To cite another example, the California Mental Health Services Authority made a multi-year commitment to fund a "Center for Dignity, Social Inclusion and Stigma Elimination." Instead of providing treatment and services to people with severe mental illness, it will provide ads and brochures to the public.
When the myriad of examples like this are documented, the chair of the committee, Dr. Larry Poaster wrote that critics are "use(ing) single anecdotes out of context and ignore overwhelming facts." But it is Dr. Poaster who fails to present the big picture.
As part of the committee chair's claim that MHSA is working well, he points to a report that shows MHSA Full Service Partnerships (FSP) reduced hospitalizations, arrests and incarcerations. Those claims are probably true. It's a good and important program. But he fails to disclose that these programs are exclusively for voluntary patients. The homeless psychotic people on the streets who 'know' they are Jesus or the FBI planted a transmitter in their head -- the most severely ill who refuse treatment can not get access to these programs. They are turned over to police and law enforcement in record numbers. As a result of realignment, many may soon to be discharged back into the communities where service providers will again refuse to serve them.
Dr. Poaster correctly notes that 20% of total MHSA funding goes to "Prevention and Early Intervention" programs. The law requires those programs to be "designed to prevent mental illnesses from becoming severe and disabling." But the oversight committee's guidelines to counties say, "(P)revention programs are expected to focus on individuals prior to diagnosis of a mental illness. (emphasis in original)." 20% of MHSA funds meant to help people with mental illness are now being diverted from their proper destination. The mentally ill are specifically excluded. Dr. Poaster claims these programs are effective but MHSOAC minutes show their evaluation "is based on what counties said they were going to do, rather than actual on-the-ground assessment."
In defense of the status quo, the Oversight Commission chair claims that counties, not the committee, set priorities and that millions were spent on a process that included "the diverse segments that are affected by mental health: schools, law enforcement, homeless programs, social services, faith communities and countless others." Prop 63 was not passed to improve mental health (make people happier) it was passed to "reduce the long-term adverse impact... resulting from untreated serious mental illness." Including these 'countless others' led to a money-grab free-for-all and counties developing amorphous something-for-everyone plans that focused primarily on 'social services' rather than treatment and services for those with severe mental illness. Lack of housing, education and employment were defined as 'risk factors' for poor mental health, and therefore housing, education and employment programs were showered with money that should have been spent helping people with severe mental illness. Except in the case of Nevada County (and more recently Los Angeles county) none of the county plans included implementation of Laura's Law, and making services available to those enrolled. Services for Laura's Law recipients is the exact type of "new and innovative" services MHSA should be funding.
Millions continue to be spent on process, committees, consultants, PR firms, publishers, art directors, and writers instead of programs for people with severe mental illness. Orange County just published an expensive glowing report on their use of MHSA funds, but no useful financial data that would help the public see where the money was going. And the report was fifty pages long.
As Rusty Selix, executive director of the California Council of Community Mental Health Agencies stated in reviewing where we are, "In many ways, conditions are horrendous and difficult, but we're kind of used to that."
As the family member of someone with severe mental illness, I am not used to that. The problems with MHSA are not 'isolated incidents'.
What's the answer?
1. The legislature should require distributors of MHSA funding to follow the language and clear intent of the law and only distribute MHSA funds to programs that focus on "severe mental illness." They can accomplish that by adopting the National Institute of Mental Health's definition of 'serious mental illness,' which covers no more than 8% of the population and require all or the majority of MHSA funding to be spent on this targeted population. By using this definition, California can avoid the wrangling that would result from trying to create its own definition.
2. The state should use its "clarification" power under Section 18 of MHSA to eliminate regulations that are contrary to law and direct desperately needed MHSA funds towards uses consistent with MHSA.
3. Rose King, a veteran California political consultant who was involved in writing MHSA legislation makes a good case for the legislature to reexamine the maintenance of effort provision, which created a two-tier system: those with serious illness who received minimal and substandard services prior to MHSA are now routinely and intentionally denied any MHSA-funded services, while those who are barely ill, or not ill, get comprehensive services.
4. Carla Jacobs of the Treatment Advocacy Center says the legislature should remove the sunset provisionfrom Laura's Law because it discourages counties from making the long-term plans needed to correctly implement it. Once Laura's Law is implemented, MHSA funds could be used to serve those enrolled in Laura's Law in programs already serving others.
5. MHSA boards should be independent of the organizations they fund. End the conflict of interest caused by board members, employees, former board members and former employees of MHSA recipients serving on the oversight committees.
The critics of MHSA do not have an MHSA-funded PR firm on their side. But they do have the facts.
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Mental Health Services Act Fails To Serve Mentally Ill in California
Dr. Larry Poaster, the chair of the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission (MHSOAC) wrote an op-ed in Capital Weekly criticizing families of people with severe mental illness who criticize how Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) funds are spent. He claims the program is working well. But it's not. For one, the oversight committee itself is diverting MHSA funds meant to help people with severe mental illness to other causes. In their case, it's to hire a PR firm to further the oversight committee's claim that all is well. How does hiring a PR firm help people with severe mental illness? Is that why taxpayers voted to tax themselves? They felt a dearth of PR firms? To cite another example, the California Mental Health Services Authority made a multi-year commitment to fund a "Center for Dignity, Social Inclusion and Stigma Elimination." Instead of providing treatment and services to people with severe mental illness, it will provide ads and brochures to the public.
When the myriad of examples like this are documented, Dr. Poaster claims that critics are "use(ing) single anecdotes out of context and ignore overwhelming facts." But it is Dr. Poaster who fails to present the big picture.
As part of his claim that MHSA is working well, he points to a report that shows MHSA Full Service Partnerships (FSP) reduced hospitalizations, arrests and incarcerations. Those claims are probably true. It's a good and important program. But he fails to disclose that these programs are exclusively for voluntary patients. The homeless psychotic people on the streets who 'know', they are Jesus or the FBI planted a transmitter in their head--the most severely ill who refuse treatment can not get access to these programs. They are turned over to police and law enforcement in record numbers. As a result of realignment, many may soon to be discharged back into the communities where service providers will again refuse to serve them.
Dr. Poaster correctly notes that 20% of total MHSA funding goes to "Prevention and Early Intervention" programs. The law requires those programs to be "designed to prevent mental illnesses from becoming severe and disabling." But the oversight committee's guidelines to counties say, "(P)revention programs are expected to focus on individuals prior to diagnosis of a mental illness. (emphasis in original)". 20% of MHSA funds meant to help people with mental illness are now being diverted from their proper destination. The mentally ill are specifically excluded. Dr. Poaster claims these programs are effective but MHSOAC minutes show their evaluation "is based on what counties said they were going to do, rather than actual on-the-ground assessment."
In defense of the status-quo, the Oversight Commission chair claims that counties, not the committee set priorities and that millions were spent on a process that included "the diverse segments that are affected by mental health: schools, law enforcement, homeless programs, social services, faith communities and countless others." Prop 63 was not passed to improve mental health (make people happier) it was passed to reduce the long-term adverse impact... resulting from untreated serious mental illness." Including these 'countless others' led to a money grab free-for-all and counties developing amorphous something-for-everyone plans that focused primarily on 'social services' rather than treatment and services for those with severe mental illness. Lack of housing, education and employment were defined as 'risk factors' for poor mental health, and therefore housing, education and employment programs were showered with money that should have been spent helping people with severe mental illness. Except in the case of Nevada County (and more recently Los Angeles county) none of the county plans included implementation of Laura's Law, and making services available to those enrolled. Services for Laura's Law recipients is the exact type of "new and innovative" services MHSA should be funding.
Millions continue to be spent on process, committees, consultants, PR firms, publishers, art directors, and writers instead of programs for people with severe mental illness. Orange County just published an expensive glowing report on their use of MHSA funds, but no useful financial data that would help the public see where the money was going. And the report was fifty pages long.
As Rusty Selix, executive director of the California Council of Community Mental Health Agencies stated in reviewing where we are "In many ways, conditions are horrendous and difficult, but we're kind of used to that."
As the family member of someone with severe mental illness, I am not used to that. The problems with MHSA are not 'isolated incidents'.
What's the answer?
1. The legislature should require distributors of MHSA funding to follow the language and clear intent of the law and only distribute MHSA funds to programs that focus on "severe mental illness." They can accomplish that by adopting the National Institute of Mental Health's definition of 'serious mental illness', which covers no more than 8% of the population and require all or the majority of MHSA funding to be spent on this targeted population. By using this definition, California can avoid the wrangling that would result from trying to create it's own definition.
2. The state should use its "clarification" power under Section 18 of MHSA to eliminate regulations that are contrary to law and direct desperately needed MHSA funds towards uses consistent with MHSA.
3. Rose King, a veteran California political consultant who was involved in writing MHSA legislation makes a good case for the legislature to reexamine the maintenance of effort provision, which created a two-tier system: those with serious illness who received minimal and substandard services prior to MHSA are now routinely and intentionally denied any MHSA funded services, while those who are barely ill, or not ill, get comprehensive services.
4. Carla Jacobs of the Treatment Advocacy Center says the legislature should remove the sunset provision from Laura's Law because it discourages counties from making the long-term plans needed to correctly implement it. Once Laura's Law is implemented, MHSA funds could be used to serve those enrolled in Laura's Law in programs already serving others.
5. MHSA boards should be independent of the organizations they fund. End the conflict of interest cause by board members, employees, former board members and former employees of MHSA recipients serving on the oversight committees.
The critics of MHSA do not have an MHSA-funded PR firm on their side. But they do have the facts.
When the myriad of examples like this are documented, Dr. Poaster claims that critics are "use(ing) single anecdotes out of context and ignore overwhelming facts." But it is Dr. Poaster who fails to present the big picture.
As part of his claim that MHSA is working well, he points to a report that shows MHSA Full Service Partnerships (FSP) reduced hospitalizations, arrests and incarcerations. Those claims are probably true. It's a good and important program. But he fails to disclose that these programs are exclusively for voluntary patients. The homeless psychotic people on the streets who 'know', they are Jesus or the FBI planted a transmitter in their head--the most severely ill who refuse treatment can not get access to these programs. They are turned over to police and law enforcement in record numbers. As a result of realignment, many may soon to be discharged back into the communities where service providers will again refuse to serve them.
Dr. Poaster correctly notes that 20% of total MHSA funding goes to "Prevention and Early Intervention" programs. The law requires those programs to be "designed to prevent mental illnesses from becoming severe and disabling." But the oversight committee's guidelines to counties say, "(P)revention programs are expected to focus on individuals prior to diagnosis of a mental illness. (emphasis in original)". 20% of MHSA funds meant to help people with mental illness are now being diverted from their proper destination. The mentally ill are specifically excluded. Dr. Poaster claims these programs are effective but MHSOAC minutes show their evaluation "is based on what counties said they were going to do, rather than actual on-the-ground assessment."
In defense of the status-quo, the Oversight Commission chair claims that counties, not the committee set priorities and that millions were spent on a process that included "the diverse segments that are affected by mental health: schools, law enforcement, homeless programs, social services, faith communities and countless others." Prop 63 was not passed to improve mental health (make people happier) it was passed to reduce the long-term adverse impact... resulting from untreated serious mental illness." Including these 'countless others' led to a money grab free-for-all and counties developing amorphous something-for-everyone plans that focused primarily on 'social services' rather than treatment and services for those with severe mental illness. Lack of housing, education and employment were defined as 'risk factors' for poor mental health, and therefore housing, education and employment programs were showered with money that should have been spent helping people with severe mental illness. Except in the case of Nevada County (and more recently Los Angeles county) none of the county plans included implementation of Laura's Law, and making services available to those enrolled. Services for Laura's Law recipients is the exact type of "new and innovative" services MHSA should be funding.
Millions continue to be spent on process, committees, consultants, PR firms, publishers, art directors, and writers instead of programs for people with severe mental illness. Orange County just published an expensive glowing report on their use of MHSA funds, but no useful financial data that would help the public see where the money was going. And the report was fifty pages long.
As Rusty Selix, executive director of the California Council of Community Mental Health Agencies stated in reviewing where we are "In many ways, conditions are horrendous and difficult, but we're kind of used to that."
As the family member of someone with severe mental illness, I am not used to that. The problems with MHSA are not 'isolated incidents'.
What's the answer?
1. The legislature should require distributors of MHSA funding to follow the language and clear intent of the law and only distribute MHSA funds to programs that focus on "severe mental illness." They can accomplish that by adopting the National Institute of Mental Health's definition of 'serious mental illness', which covers no more than 8% of the population and require all or the majority of MHSA funding to be spent on this targeted population. By using this definition, California can avoid the wrangling that would result from trying to create it's own definition.
2. The state should use its "clarification" power under Section 18 of MHSA to eliminate regulations that are contrary to law and direct desperately needed MHSA funds towards uses consistent with MHSA.
3. Rose King, a veteran California political consultant who was involved in writing MHSA legislation makes a good case for the legislature to reexamine the maintenance of effort provision, which created a two-tier system: those with serious illness who received minimal and substandard services prior to MHSA are now routinely and intentionally denied any MHSA funded services, while those who are barely ill, or not ill, get comprehensive services.
4. Carla Jacobs of the Treatment Advocacy Center says the legislature should remove the sunset provision from Laura's Law because it discourages counties from making the long-term plans needed to correctly implement it. Once Laura's Law is implemented, MHSA funds could be used to serve those enrolled in Laura's Law in programs already serving others.
5. MHSA boards should be independent of the organizations they fund. End the conflict of interest cause by board members, employees, former board members and former employees of MHSA recipients serving on the oversight committees.
The critics of MHSA do not have an MHSA-funded PR firm on their side. But they do have the facts.
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