Rep. Joe Sosnowski

Filed: 3/24/2011

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO HOUSE BILL 2982

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend House Bill 2982 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Regional Integrated Behavioral Health Networks Act.
 
6    Section 5. Legislative Findings. The General Assembly
7recognizes that an estimated 25% of Illinoisans aged 18 years
8or older have experienced a mental or substance use disorder,
9an estimated 700,000 Illinois adults aged 18 years or older
10have a serious mental illness and an estimated 240,000 Illinois
11children and adolescents have a serious emotional disturbance.
12And on any given day, many go without treatment because it is
13not available or accessible. Recent federal and State fiscal
14crises have exacerbated an already deteriorating mental health
15and substance abuse (behavioral health) treatment system that
16is characterized by fragmentation, geographic disparities,

 

 

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1inadequate funding, psychiatric and other mental health
2workforce shortages, lack of transportation, and overuse of
3acute and emergency care by persons in crisis who are unable to
4obtain treatment from less intensive community alternatives.
5The failure to treat mental and substance use illnesses has
6human and financial consequences: human suffering and loss of
7function; increased use of hospital emergency departments;
8increased use of all medical services; increased unemployment
9and lack of productivity; lack of meaningful engagement in
10family and communities; school failure; homelessness;
11incarceration; and, in some instances, death. The citizens of
12Illinois with mental and substance use illnesses need an
13organized and integrated system of care that recognizes
14regional differences and is able to deliver the right care to
15the right person at the right time.
 
16    Section 10. Purpose. The purpose of this Act is to require
17the Department of Human Services to facilitate the creation of
18Regional Integrated Behavioral Health Networks (hereinafter
19"Networks") for the purpose of ensuring and improving access to
20appropriate mental health and substance abuse (hereinafter
21"behavioral health") services throughout Illinois by providing
22a platform for the organization of all relevant health, mental
23health, substance abuse, and other community entities, and by
24providing a mechanism to use and channel financial and other
25resources efficiently and effectively. Networks may be located

 

 

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1in each of the Department of Human Services geographic regions.
 
2    Section 15. Goals. Goals shall include, but not be limited
3to, the following: enabling persons with mental and substance
4use illnesses to access clinically appropriate, evidence-based
5services, regardless of where they reside in the State and
6particularly in rural areas; improving access to mental health
7and substance abuse services throughout Illinois, but
8especially in rural Illinois communities, by fostering
9innovative financing and collaboration among a variety of
10health, behavioral health, social service, and other community
11entities and by supporting the development of
12regional-specific planning and strategies; facilitating the
13integration of behavioral health services with primary and
14other medical services, advancing opportunities under federal
15health reform initiatives; ensuring actual or
16technologically-assisted access to the entire continuum of
17integrated care, including the provision of services in the
18areas of prevention, consumer or patient assessment and
19diagnosis, psychiatric care, case coordination, crisis and
20emergency care, acute inpatient and outpatient treatment in
21private hospitals and from other community providers, support
22services, and community residential settings; identifying
23funding for persons who do not have insurance and do not
24qualify for State and federal healthcare payment programs such
25as Medicaid or Medicare; improving access to transportation in

 

 

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1rural areas.
 
2    Section 20. Steering Committee and Networks.
3    (a) To achieve these goals, the Department of Human
4Services shall convene a Regional Integrated Behavioral Health
5Networks Steering Committee (hereinafter "Steering Committee")
6comprised of State agencies involved in the provision,
7regulation, or financing of health, mental health, substance
8abuse, rehabilitation, and other services. These include, but
9shall not be limited to, the following agencies:
10        (1) The Department of Healthcare and Family Services.
11        (2) The Department of Human Services and its Divisions
12    of Mental Illness and Alcoholism and Substance Abuse
13    Services.
14        (3) The Department of Public Health, including its
15    Center for Rural Health.
16    The Steering Committee shall include a representative from
17each Network. The agencies of the Steering Committee are
18directed to work collaboratively to provide consultation,
19advice, and leadership to the Networks in facilitating
20communication within and across multiple agencies and in
21removing regulatory barriers that may prevent Networks from
22accomplishing the goals. The Steering Committee collectively
23or through one of its member Agencies shall also provide
24technical assistance to the Networks.
25    (b) There also shall be convened Networks in each of the

 

 

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1Department of Human Services' regions comprised of
2representatives of community stakeholders represented in the
3Network, including when available, but not limited to, relevant
4trade and professional associations representing hospitals,
5community providers, public health care, hospice care, long
6term care, law enforcement, emergency medical service,
7physicians trained in psychiatry; an organization that
8advocates on behalf of federally qualified health centers, an
9organization that advocates on behalf of persons suffering with
10mental illness and substance abuse disorders, an organization
11that advocates on behalf of persons with disabilities, an
12organization that advocates on behalf of persons who live in
13rural areas, an organization that advocates on behalf of
14persons who live in medically underserved areas; and others
15designated by the Steering Committee or the Networks. A member
16from each Network may choose a representative who may serve on
17the Steering Committee.
 
18    Section 25. Development of Network Plans. Each Network
19shall develop a plan for its respective region that addresses
20the following:
21    (a) Inventory of all mental health and substance abuse
22treatment services, primary health care facilities and
23services, private hospitals, State-operated psychiatric
24hospitals, long term care facilities, social services,
25transportation services, and any services available to serve

 

 

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1persons with mental and substance use illnesses.
2    (b) Identification of unmet community needs, including,
3but not limited to, the following:
4        (1) Waiting lists in community mental health and
5    substance abuse services.
6        (2) Hospital emergency department use by persons with
7    mental and substance use illnesses, including volume,
8    length of stay, and challenges associated with obtaining
9    psychiatric assessment.
10        (3) Difficulty obtaining admission to inpatient
11    facilities, and reasons therefore.
12        (4) Availability of primary care providers in the
13    community, including Federally Qualified Health Centers
14    and Rural Health Centers.
15        (5) Availability of psychiatrists and mental health
16    professionals.
17        (6) Transportation issues.
18        (7) Other.
19    (c) Identification of opportunities to improve access to
20mental and substance abuse services through the integration of
21specialty behavioral health services with primary care,
22including, but not limited to, the following:
23        (1) Availability of Federally Qualified Health Centers
24    in community with mental health staff.
25        (2) Development of accountable care organizations or
26    other primary care entities.

 

 

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1        (3) Availability of acute care hospitals with
2    specialized psychiatric capacity.
3        (4) Community providers with an interest in
4    collaborating with acute care providers.
5    (d) Development of a plan to address community needs,
6including a specific timeline for implementation of specific
7objectives and establishment of evaluation measures. The
8comprehensive plan should include the complete continuum of
9behavioral health services, including, but not limited to, the
10following:
11        (1) Prevention.
12        (2) Client assessment and diagnosis.
13        (3) An array of outpatient behavioral health services.
14        (4) Case coordination.
15        (5) Crisis and emergency services.
16        (6) Treatment, including inpatient psychiatric
17    services in public and private hospitals.
18        (7) Long term care facilities.
19        (8) Community residential alternatives to
20    institutional settings.
21        (9) Primary care services.
 
22    Section 30. Timeline. The Network plans shall be prepared
23within 6 months of establishment of the Network. The Steering
24Committee shall assist the Networks in the development of plans
25by providing technical expertise and in facilitating funding

 

 

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1support and opportunities for the development of services
2identified under each of the plans.
 
3    Section 35. Report to Governor and General Assembly. The
4Steering Committee shall report to the Governor and General
5Assembly the status of each regional plan, including the
6recommendations of the network councils to accomplish their
7goals and improve access to behavioral health services. The
8report shall also contain performance measures, including
9changes to the behavioral health services capacity in the
10region; any waiting lists for community services; volume and
11wait times in hospital emergency departments for access to
12behavioral health services; development of primary
13care-behavioral health partnerships or barriers to their
14formation; and funding challenges and opportunities. This
15report shall be submitted on an annual basis.
 
16    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January
171, 2012.".