Last year, the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health called
for transforming the delivery of mental health care in America. It envisions
a future where mental illnesses are detected early and where everyone in need
has access to effective treatment and supports. For this to occur, states and
localities will need help from Congress and the federal government to reform
their public mental health systems. Below are some questions to ask your state’s
candidates for U.S. Senate and House of Representatives, to help you learn
more about how they will support the Commission’s goal and the civil rights
and human dignity
of people with mental disabilities.
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The New Freedom Commission finds it “imperative that our Nation adopt
a comprehensive, systematic approach to improving the mental health status
of children.” Schools can play a vital role in such a strategy. What
would you do to strengthen mental health programs in schools to improve early
intervention and provide services that encourage youth with serious mental
disorders to stay in school and graduate?
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Medicaid is the single most important funding source for public mental
health services. What would you do to strengthen Medicaid to ensure that it
continues to support critical services for low-income people?
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Medicaid law requires that all Medicaid-covered children have access
to all medically necessary services to treat their physical or mental health
condition.
This is known as the EPSDT mandate (Early and Periodic Screening, Diagnosis
and Treatment). Would you propose any changes in the federal EPSDT mandate
for children on Medicaid?
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Large numbers of people with mental disorders are incarcerated in jail,
prison or juvenile detention as a result of overstretched and underfunded
mental health systems. What would you do to address this “criminalization” of
people with mental disorders?
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Studies by the General Accounting Office and Congressional oversight
committees show that thousands of families are forced to give up custody
of their children
to child welfare or juvenile justice agencies solely to obtain mental health
services for them. What would you do to create a more humane and rational way
for these children to access care?
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People with serious mental illnesses have extremely high unemployment
rates, even though most report they want and are able to work. Federal law
created
disincentives to work because benefits (such as income support, housing and
food stamps) are discontinued once earnings accrue. What would you do to deal
with interagency problems of work disincentives for people with disabilities?
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Adults with serious mental illnesses often lack housing, and many are
homeless.
What policies would you promote to expand the availability of low-income
housing, particularly housing targeted to individuals with disabilities?
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According to the U.S. Surgeon General’s Report on Mental Health
and the New Freedom Commission, people of color receive fewer and poorer
quality
mental health services. What would you do to ensure that members of minority
populations have equal access to mental health services?
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Many fiscal difficulties in the public system would be eased if more
Americans had coverage for mental health care. How would you expand access to public
and private health insurance and how would you integrate mental health services
into your proposals?
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Given the findings of both the U.S. Surgeon General and the New Freedom
Commission that many Americans lack access to the range of highly effective
treatments for mental disorders, particularly those who rely upon state and
local mental health systems, what would you do to address this gap between
what we know and what we do?
The battle over judicial nominations for the federal court has become an extremely
important concern for people with disabilities.Many of the President’s
nominees have a record of hostility toward individual enforcement of the Americans
with Disabilities Act and other civil rights laws. What would you do
to ensure that the nominees who are confirmed by the Senate are judges who
respect Congress’ authority
to pass civil rights laws and to make them enforceable by individuals against
states and other entities?
