H‑1682.1   _____________________________________________

 

SUBSTITUTE HOUSE BILL 1124

 

           _____________________________________________

 

State of Washington      57th Legislature     2001 Regular Session

 

By House Committee on Children & Family Services (originally sponsored by Representatives Darneille, Morell, Tokuda, Campbell, Hunt, Kagi, Miloscia, Ballasiotes, Veloria, Linville, Dickerson, Edwards, Kenney, O'Brien, Keiser, Edmonds, Schual‑Berke, Jackley, Lovick, Santos, McIntire and Haigh)

 

READ FIRST TIME 02/14/01. 

_1      AN ACT Relating to mental health services for children;

_2  amending RCW 71.36.005 and 71.36.030; and adding a new section to

_3  chapter 71.36 RCW.

     

_4  BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

     

_5      Sec. 1.  RCW 71.36.005 and 1991 c 326 s 11 are each amended to read

_6  as follows:

_7      The legislature intends to encourage the development of

_8  community-based interagency collaborative efforts to plan for and

_9  provide mental health services to children in a manner that

10  coordinates existing categorical children's mental health programs

11  and funding, is sensitive to the unique cultural circumstances of

12  children of color, eliminates duplicative case management, and to

13  the greatest extent possible, blends categorical funding to offer

14  more service options to each child.

15      The legislature finds that reduction of risk, prevention of

16  onset, and early intervention in childhood are important

17  strategies to promote healthy development since many adult mental

18  disorders begin in childhood.  Mental health is linked to general

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_1  health and classroom performance, and to avoiding involvement with

_2  the juvenile justice system.  Untreated mental illness results in

_3  more severe symptoms for the individual and more costs to

_4  society's human services and law enforcement systems.

_5      The legislature intends that the children's mental health

_6  service delivery system in Washington state be operated in an

_7  effective and efficient manner with measurable outcomes and that

_8  to the degree possible all children in need of mental health

_9  services will have access to quality, professional services in a

10  timely manner.

     

11      Sec. 2.  RCW 71.36.030 and 1991 c 326 s 14 are each amended to read

12  as follows:

13      (1) On or before January 1, 1992, each regional support

14  network, or county authority in counties that have not established

15  a regional support network, shall initiate a local planning effort

16  to develop a children's mental health services delivery system.

17      (2) Representatives of the following agencies or organizations

18  and the following individuals shall participate in the local

19  planning effort:

20      (a) Representatives of the department of social and health

21  services in the following program areas:  Children and family

22  services, medical care, mental health, juvenile rehabilitation,

23  alcohol and substance abuse, and developmental disabilities;

24      (b) The juvenile courts;

25      (c) The public health department or health district;

26      (d) The school districts;

27      (e) The educational service district serving schools in the

28  county;

29      (f) Head start or early childhood education and assistance

30  programs;

31      (g) Community action agencies; and

32      (h) Children's services providers, including minority mental

33  health providers.

34      (3) Parents of children in need of mental health services and

35  parents of children of color shall be invited to participate in

36  the local planning effort.

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_1      (4) The following information shall be developed through the

_2  local planning effort and submitted to the secretary:

_3      (a) A supplement to the county's January 1, 1991, children's

_4  mental health services report prepared pursuant to RCW 71.24.049

_5  to include the following data:

_6      (i) The number of children in need of mental health services in

_7  the county or counties covered by the local planning effort,

_8  including children in school and children receiving services

_9  through the department of social and health services division of

10  children and family services, division of developmental

11  disabilities, division of alcohol and substance abuse, and

12  division of juvenile rehabilitation, grouped by severity of their

13  mental illness;

14      (ii) The number of such children that are underserved or

15  unserved and the types of services needed by such children; and

16      (iii) The supply of children's mental health specialists in the

17  county or counties covered by the local planning effort.

18      (b) A children's mental health services delivery plan that

19  includes a description of the following:

20      (i) Children that will be served, giving consideration to

21  children who are at significant risk of experiencing mental

22  illness, as well as those already experiencing mental illness;

23      (ii) How appropriate services needed by children served through

24  the plan will be identified and provided, including prevention and

25  identification services;

26      (iii) How a lead case manager for each child will be

27  identified;

28      (iv) How funding for existing services will be coordinated to

29  create more flexibility in meeting children's needs.  Such funding

30  shall include the services and programs inventoried pursuant to

31  RCW 71.36.020(1);

32      (v) How the children's mental health delivery system will

33  incorporate the elements of the early periodic screening,

34  diagnosis, and treatment services plan developed pursuant to RCW

35  71.36.020(2); and

36      (vi) How the children's mental health delivery system will

37  coordinate with the regional support network information system

38  developed pursuant to RCW 71.24.035(5)(g).

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_1      (5) In developing the children's mental health services

_2  delivery plan, every effort shall be made to reduce duplication in

_3  service delivery and promote complementary services among all

_4  entities that provide children's services related to mental

_5  health.

_6      (6) The children's mental health services delivery plan shall

_7  address the needs of children of color through at least the

_8  following mechanisms:

_9      (a) Outreach initiatives, services, and modes of service

10  delivery that meet the unique needs of children of color; and

11      (b) Services to children of color that are culturally relevant

12  and acceptable, as well as linguistically accessible.

13      (7) The regional support networks shall biennially update the

14  information in the children's mental health services delivery plan

15  described in subsection (4) of this section.  The updates shall

16  include a progress assessment based on the goals of the previous

17  plan.  The revised plans shall be submitted to the secretary, who

18  shall compile the information in the individual plans into a

19  statewide report to be submitted to the relevant committees of the

20  legislature by July 1, 2002, and biennially thereafter.

     

21      NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3.  A new section is added to chapter 71.36

22  RCW to read as follows:

23      The joint legislative audit and review committee shall conduct

24  a comprehensive review of the provisions of this chapter.  The

25  review shall be submitted to the appropriate committees of the

26  legislature by July 1, 2002.  The review shall include:

27      (1) An evaluation of both the inventory of services and early

28  periodic screening, diagnosis, and treatment plan described in RCW

29  71.36.020.  The evaluation of the inventory of services shall

30  include an assessment of the completeness of the inventory;

31  recommendations for the need to establish performance measures for

32  the children's mental health services delivery system;

33  recommendations for modifying the current statutory requirements

34  related to the inventory; and recommendations for the

35  dissemination and uses of the inventory.  The evaluation of the

36  early periodic screening, diagnosis, and treatment plan shall

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_1  include an assessment of the completeness of the plan; an

_2  evaluation of the implementation of the plan; and an assessment of

_3  modifications needed to assure that federal funding is maximized;

_4  and

_5      (2) An evaluation of the effectiveness of the implementation of

_6  the children's mental health services delivery plan described in

_7  RCW 71.36.030.  The evaluation shall include an assessment of the

_8  overall needs of children with mental illness and the continuum of

_9  resources available to them.  The evaluation also shall include

10  recommendations for modifications to the children's mental health

11  services delivery system and the funding necessary to meet the

12  needs of these children by the year 2006.

 

‑‑‑ END ‑‑‑

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