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North Carolina’s Grade. Some hope for the future. Deby Dihoff, Executive Director, NAMI NC. Collaboration with DMHDDSAS. Met with full Executive Leadership Team 2/6/07 Pledge from Director Moseley to return with a written plan to address some areas needing improvement
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North Carolina’s Grade Some hope for the future Deby Dihoff, Executive Director, NAMI NC
Collaboration with DMHDDSAS • Met with full Executive Leadership Team 2/6/07 • Pledge from Director Moseley to return with a written plan to address some areas needing improvement • Held meetings with Mike Moseley and Mike Lancaster on grade improvement
What areas have improved? • NC General Assembly allocated $93 M in 06 to Mental Health statewide • This will improve our status from the current 43rd per capita in mental health spending • CIT implementation has support; 4 existing communities (Pitt, Wake, Winston-Salem, Vance) with many others in the development stage
Specific requests to the Division • Restoration of benefits post incarceration (0/2) • Consumer and Family Monitoring Teams (0/2) • Reduction of use of seclusion/restraint (0/3) • Support for CIT statewide implementation
LOC Recommendations • Purpose of LOC • Disclaimer: it’s early, things change • Concern that since money wasn’t used in 06 appropriations, why should legislators allocate more?
Proposal #l • Build community infrastructure • $113 M in 07-08 Total • $ll5 M in 08-09 Total • Additional Housing Assistance
Proposal #l continued • 24 Hour Transitional residential treatment program (alternate to rest homes) • Uniform screening of those admitted to a facility • $20M year one, $30M year two to expand crisis services • $5M state psychiatric hospital pilot (reduce admits by increasing crisis services)
Assistance to Law Enforcement • Add l5 additional jail diversion programs • Money for technical assistance and training of CIT teams
Trust Fund • Repeals language that allows money for state hospital repair, construction • Restricts money to community expansion
Policy Improvements • Increase flexibility of funds (single stream funding) for four more LMEs • Establishes rate tiers for new community support definitions • $30 M each year for new mental health services • Uniform sliding fee scale • Expand commitment pilot program to five more LMEs
What can you do? • Contact your legislators • Ask them to support LOC recommendations • Ask for them to support parity • Support anti death penalty draft bill (Kinnaird) for those who were severely mentally ill at the time of the commission of the crime
What will this accomplish • We need more money to build community services • This infusion of $ll3 M if spent correctly will go a long ways towards improving the lives of those who live with mental illness • It will take years to make up for the financial neglect of services