BILL REQ. #:  H-4970.1 

READ FIRST TIME 02/03/06.   

     AN ACT Relating to clarifying the financial responsibility of the state and regional support networks for the costs associated with the care of individuals in need of involuntary treatment under chapter 71.05 RCW; amending RCW 71.24.016, 71.24.330, and 71.05.560; and creating a new section.

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

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   (1) The legislature intends to address the needs of people with a mental illness with a targeted, coordinated, and comprehensive set of evidence-based practices that are effective in serving individuals in their community and will reduce the need for placements in state mental hospitals. The legislature further intends to explicitly hold regional support networks accountable for serving people with a mental illness within their geographic boundaries and for not exceeding their allocation of state hospital beds. Within funds appropriated by the legislature for this purpose, regional support networks shall develop the means to serve the needs of people with a mental illness within their geographic boundaries. Elements of the program may include:
     (a) Crisis triage;
     (b) Evaluation and treatment and community hospital beds;
     (c) Residential beds;
     (d) Program for community treatment teams; and
     (e) Out-patient services.
     (2) The regional support network will have the flexibility, within the funds appropriated by the legislature for this purpose, to design the mix of services that will be most effective within their service area of meeting the needs of people with a mental illness and avoiding placement of such individuals at the state mental hospital.

Sec. 2   RCW 71.24.016 and 2001 c 323 s 4 are each amended to read as follows:
     It is the intent of the legislature that the community mental health service delivery system focus on maintaining mentally ill individuals in the community, and reserve the use of state hospital beds for individuals who cannot be served safely in the community. The program shall be evaluated and managed through a limited number of performance measures designed to hold each regional support network accountable for program success.

Sec. 3   RCW 71.24.330 and 2005 c 503 s 6 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Contracts between a regional support network and the department shall include mechanisms for monitoring performance under the contract and remedies for failure to substantially comply with the requirements of the contract including, but not limited to, financial penalties, termination of the contract, and reprocurement of the contract.
     (2) The procurement process shall encourage the preservation of infrastructure previously purchased by the community mental health service delivery system, the maintenance of linkages between other services and delivery systems, and maximization of the use of available funds for services versus profits. The procurement process shall provide that public funds appropriated by the legislature shall not be used to promote or deter, encourage, or discourage employees from exercising their rights under Title 29, chapter 7, subchapter II, United States Code or chapter 41.56 RCW.
     (3) In addition to the requirements of RCW 71.24.035, contracts shall:
     (a) Define administrative costs and ensure that the regional support network does not exceed an administrative cost of ten percent of available funds;
     (b) Require effective collaboration with law enforcement, criminal justice agencies, and the chemical dependency treatment system;
     (c) Require substantial implementation of department adopted integrated screening and assessment process and matrix of best practices; ((and))
     (d) Maintain the decision-making independence of designated mental health professionals; and
     (e) Ensure that regional support networks do not exceed the state hospital bed allocation established in their contract with the department.

Sec. 4   RCW 71.05.560 and 1998 c 297 s 24 are each amended to read as follows:
     The department shall adopt such rules as may be necessary to effectuate the intent and purposes of this chapter, which shall include but not be limited to evaluation of the quality of the program and facilities operating pursuant to this chapter, evaluation of the effectiveness and cost effectiveness of such programs and facilities, implementation of a formula to allocate utilization of state hospital beds among the regional support networks and hold the regional support networks accountable for not over utilizing their allocation, and procedures and standards for certification and other action relevant to evaluation and treatment facilities.