BILL REQ. #:  H-0107.1 

Prefiled 12/18/2006. Read first time 01/08/2007.   Referred to Committee on Health Care.

     AN ACT Relating to creating a consumer or advocate-run mental health service delivery system; amending RCW 71.24.015, 71.24.025, and 71.24.300; making an appropriation; providing an effective date; and declaring an emergency.

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

Sec. 1   RCW 71.24.015 and 2005 c 503 s 1 are each amended to read as follows:
     It is the intent of the legislature to establish a community mental health program ((which shall)) to help people experiencing mental illness to retain a respected and productive position in the community. This will be accomplished through programs that focus on resilience and recovery, and practices that are evidence-based, research-based, consensus-based, or, where these do not exist, promising or emerging best practices, which provide for:
     (1) Access to mental health services for adults of the state who are acutely mentally ill, chronically mentally ill, or seriously disturbed and children of the state who are acutely mentally ill, severely emotionally disturbed, or seriously disturbed, which services recognize the special needs of underserved populations, including minorities, children, the elderly, disabled, and low-income persons. Access to mental health services shall not be limited by a person's history of confinement in a state, federal, or local correctional facility. It is also the purpose of this chapter to promote the early identification of mentally ill children and to ensure that they receive the mental health care and treatment which is appropriate to their developmental level. This care should improve home, school, and community functioning, maintain children in a safe and nurturing home environment, and should enable treatment decisions to be made in response to clinical needs in accordance with sound professional judgment while also recognizing parents' rights to participate in treatment decisions for their children;
     (2) The involvement of persons with mental illness, their family members, and advocates in designing and implementing mental health services that reduce unnecessary hospitalization and incarceration and promote the recovery and employment of persons with mental illness. To improve the quality of services available and promote the rehabilitation, recovery, and reintegration of persons with mental illness, consumer and advocate participation in mental health services is an integral part of the community mental health system and shall be supported;
     (3) Accountability of efficient and effective services through state of the art outcome and performance measures and statewide standards for monitoring client and system outcomes, performance, and reporting of client and system outcome information. These processes shall be designed so as to maximize the use of available resources for direct care of people with a mental illness and to assure uniform data collection across the state;
     (4) Minimum service delivery standards;
     (5) Priorities for the use of available resources for the care of the mentally ill consistent with the priorities defined in the statute;
     (6) Coordination of services within the department, including those divisions within the department that provide services to children, between the department and the office of the superintendent of public instruction, and among state mental hospitals, county authorities, regional support networks, community mental health services, and other support services, which shall to the maximum extent feasible also include the families of the mentally ill, and other service providers; and
     (7) Coordination of services aimed at reducing duplication in service delivery and promoting complementary services among all entities that provide mental health services to adults and children.
     It is the policy of the state to encourage the provision of a full range of treatment and rehabilitation services in the state for mental disorders including services operated by consumers and advocates. The legislature intends to encourage the development of regional mental health services with adequate local flexibility to assure eligible people in need of care access to the least-restrictive treatment alternative appropriate to their needs, and the availability of treatment components to assure continuity of care. To this end, counties are encouraged to enter into joint operating agreements with other counties to form regional systems of care. Regional systems of care, whether operated by a county, group of counties, or another entity shall integrate planning, administration, and service delivery duties under chapters 71.05 and 71.24 RCW to consolidate administration, reduce administrative layering, and reduce administrative costs. The legislature hereby finds and declares that sound fiscal management requires vigilance to ensure that funds appropriated by the legislature for the provision of needed community mental health programs and services are ultimately expended solely for the purpose for which they were appropriated, and not for any other purpose.
     It is further the intent of the legislature to integrate the provision of services to provide continuity of care through all phases of treatment. To this end the legislature intends to promote active engagement with mentally ill persons and collaboration between families and service providers.

Sec. 2   RCW 71.24.025 and 2006 c 333 s 104 are each amended to read as follows:
     Unless the context clearly requires otherwise, the definitions in this section apply throughout this chapter.
     (1) "Acutely mentally ill" means a condition which is limited to a short-term severe crisis episode of:
     (a) A mental disorder as defined in RCW 71.05.020 or, in the case of a child, as defined in RCW 71.34.020;
     (b) Being gravely disabled as defined in RCW 71.05.020 or, in the case of a child, a gravely disabled minor as defined in RCW 71.34.020; or
     (c) Presenting a likelihood of serious harm as defined in RCW 71.05.020 or, in the case of a child, as defined in RCW 71.34.020.
     (2) "Advocate" means family members of consumers, members of consumer controlled organizations, or members of family member controlled organizations.
     (3) "Available resources" means funds appropriated for the purpose of providing community mental health programs, federal funds, except those provided according to Title XIX of the Social Security Act, and state funds appropriated under this chapter or chapter 71.05 RCW by the legislature during any biennium for the purpose of providing residential services, resource management services, community support services, and other mental health services. This does not include funds appropriated for the purpose of operating and administering the state psychiatric hospitals.
     (((3))) (4) "Child" means a person under the age of eighteen years.
     (((4))) (5) "Chronically mentally ill adult" means an adult who has a mental disorder and meets at least one of the following criteria:
     (a) Has undergone two or more episodes of hospital care for a mental disorder within the preceding two years; or
     (b) Has experienced a continuous psychiatric hospitalization or residential treatment exceeding six months' duration within the preceding year; or
     (c) Has been unable to engage in any substantial gainful activity by reason of any mental disorder which has lasted for a continuous period of not less than twelve months. "Substantial gainful activity" shall be defined by the department by rule consistent with Public Law 92-603, as amended.
     (((5))) (6) "Community mental health program" means all mental health services, activities, or programs using available resources.
     (((6))) (7) "Community mental health service delivery system" means public or private agencies that provide services specifically to persons with mental disorders as defined under RCW 71.05.020 and receive funding from public sources.
     (((7))) (8) "Community support services" means services authorized, planned, and coordinated through resource management services including, at a minimum, assessment, diagnosis, emergency crisis intervention available twenty-four hours, seven days a week, prescreening determinations for mentally ill persons being considered for placement in nursing homes as required by federal law, screening for patients being considered for admission to residential services, diagnosis and treatment for acutely mentally ill and severely emotionally disturbed children discovered under screening through the federal Title XIX early and periodic screening, diagnosis, and treatment program, investigation, legal, and other nonresidential services under chapter 71.05 RCW, case management services, psychiatric treatment including medication supervision, counseling, psychotherapy, assuring transfer of relevant patient information between service providers, recovery services, and other services determined by regional support networks.
     (((8))) (9) "Consensus-based" means a program or practice that has general support among treatment providers and experts, based on experience or professional literature, and may have anecdotal or case study support, or that is agreed but not possible to perform studies with random assignment and controlled groups.
     (((9))) (10) "Consumer" or "mental health consumer" means a person who has applied for, is eligible for, is receiving, or has received mental health services. For a child under the age of thirteen, or for a child age thirteen or older whose parents or legal guardians are involved in the treatment plan, the definition of consumer includes parents or legal guardians.
     (11) "Consumer-run" or "consumer or advocate-run" means entirely consumer-directed and operated or directed and operated by a partnership of consumers or advocates and nonconsumer professionals.
     (12) "County authority" means the board of county commissioners, county council, or county executive having authority to establish a community mental health program, or two or more of the county authorities specified in this subsection which have entered into an agreement to provide a community mental health program.
     (((10))) (13) "Department" means the department of social and health services.
     (((11))) (14) "Designated mental health professional" means a mental health professional designated by the county or other authority authorized in rule to perform the duties specified in this chapter.
     (((12))) (15) "Emerging best practice" or "promising practice" means a practice that presents, based on preliminary information, potential for becoming a research-based or consensus-based practice.
     (((13))) (16) "Evidence-based" means a program or practice that has had multiple site random controlled trials across heterogeneous populations demonstrating that the program or practice is effective for the population.
     (((14))) (17) "Licensed service provider" means an entity licensed according to this chapter or chapter 71.05 RCW or an entity deemed to meet state minimum standards as a result of accreditation by a recognized behavioral health accrediting body recognized and having a current agreement with the department, that meets state minimum standards or persons licensed under chapter 18.57, 18.71, 18.83, or 18.79 RCW, as it applies to registered nurses and advanced registered nurse practitioners.
     (((15))) (18) "Long-term inpatient care" means inpatient services for persons committed for, or voluntarily receiving intensive treatment for, periods of ninety days or greater under chapter 71.05 RCW. "Long-term inpatient care" as used in this chapter does not include: (a) Services for individuals committed under chapter 71.05 RCW who are receiving services pursuant to a conditional release or a court-ordered less restrictive alternative to detention; or (b) services for individuals voluntarily receiving less restrictive alternative treatment on the grounds of the state hospital.
     (((16))) (19) "Mental health services" means all services provided by regional support networks and other services provided by the state for the mentally ill.
     (((17))) (20) "Mentally ill persons" and "the mentally ill" mean persons and conditions defined in subsections (1), (((4))) (5), (((26))) (29), and (((27))) (30) of this section.
     (((18))) (21) "Recovery" means the process in which people are able to live, work, learn, and participate fully in their communities.
     (((19))) (22) "Regional support network" means a county authority or group of county authorities or other nonprofit entity recognized by the secretary in contract in a defined region.
     (((20))) (23) "Registration records" include all the records of the department, regional support networks, treatment facilities, and other persons providing services to the department, county departments, or facilities which identify persons who are receiving or who at any time have received services for mental illness.
     (((21))) (24) "Research-based" means a program or practice that has some research demonstrating effectiveness, but that does not yet meet the standard of evidence-based practices.
     (((22))) (25) "Residential services" means a complete range of residences and supports authorized by resource management services and which may involve a facility, a distinct part thereof, or services which support community living, for acutely mentally ill persons, chronically mentally ill adults, severely emotionally disturbed children, or seriously disturbed adults determined by the regional support network to be at risk of becoming acutely or chronically mentally ill. The services shall include at least evaluation and treatment services as defined in chapter 71.05 RCW, acute crisis respite care, long-term adaptive and rehabilitative care, and supervised and supported living services, and shall also include any residential services developed to service mentally ill persons in nursing homes, boarding homes, and adult family homes, and may include outpatient services provided as an element in a package of services in a supported housing model. Residential services for children in out-of-home placements related to their mental disorder shall not include the costs of food and shelter, except for children's long-term residential facilities existing prior to January 1, 1991.
     (((23))) (26) "Resilience" means the personal and community qualities that enable individuals to rebound from adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats, or other stresses, and to live productive lives.
     (((24))) (27) "Resource management services" mean the planning, coordination, and authorization of residential services and community support services administered pursuant to an individual service plan for: (a) Acutely mentally ill adults and children; (b) chronically mentally ill adults; (c) severely emotionally disturbed children; or (d) seriously disturbed adults determined solely by a regional support network to be at risk of becoming acutely or chronically mentally ill. Such planning, coordination, and authorization shall include mental health screening for children eligible under the federal Title XIX early and periodic screening, diagnosis, and treatment program. Resource management services include seven day a week, twenty-four hour a day availability of information regarding mentally ill adults' and children's enrollment in services and their individual service plan to designated mental health professionals, evaluation and treatment facilities, and others as determined by the regional support network.
     (((25))) (28) "Secretary" means the secretary of social and health services.
     (((26))) (29) "Seriously disturbed person" means a person who:
     (a) Is gravely disabled or presents a likelihood of serious harm to himself or herself or others, or to the property of others, as a result of a mental disorder as defined in chapter 71.05 RCW;
     (b) Has been on conditional release status, or under a less restrictive alternative order, at some time during the preceding two years from an evaluation and treatment facility or a state mental health hospital;
     (c) Has a mental disorder which causes major impairment in several areas of daily living;
     (d) Exhibits suicidal preoccupation or attempts; or
     (e) Is a child diagnosed by a mental health professional, as defined in chapter 71.34 RCW, as experiencing a mental disorder which is clearly interfering with the child's functioning in family or school or with peers or is clearly interfering with the child's personality development and learning.
     (((27))) (30) "Severely emotionally disturbed child" means a child who has been determined by the regional support network to be experiencing a mental disorder as defined in chapter 71.34 RCW, including those mental disorders that result in a behavioral or conduct disorder, that is clearly interfering with the child's functioning in family or school or with peers and who meets at least one of the following criteria:
     (a) Has undergone inpatient treatment or placement outside of the home related to a mental disorder within the last two years;
     (b) Has undergone involuntary treatment under chapter 71.34 RCW within the last two years;
     (c) Is currently served by at least one of the following child-serving systems: Juvenile justice, child-protection/welfare, special education, or developmental disabilities;
     (d) Is at risk of escalating maladjustment due to:
     (i) Chronic family dysfunction involving a mentally ill or inadequate caretaker;
     (ii) Changes in custodial adult;
     (iii) Going to, residing in, or returning from any placement outside of the home, for example, psychiatric hospital, short-term inpatient, residential treatment, group or foster home, or a correctional facility;
     (iv) Subject to repeated physical abuse or neglect;
     (v) Drug or alcohol abuse; or
     (vi) Homelessness.
     (((28))) (31) "State minimum standards" means minimum requirements established by rules adopted by the secretary and necessary to implement this chapter for: (a) Delivery of mental health services; (b) licensed service providers for the provision of mental health services; (c) residential services; and (d) community support services and resource management services.
     (((29))) (32) "Treatment records" include registration and all other records concerning persons who are receiving or who at any time have received services for mental illness, which are maintained by the department, by regional support networks and their staffs, and by treatment facilities. Treatment records do not include notes or records maintained for personal use by a person providing treatment services for the department, regional support networks, or a treatment facility if the notes or records are not available to others.
     (((30))) (33) "Tribal authority," for the purposes of this section and RCW 71.24.300 only, means: The federally recognized Indian tribes and the major Indian organizations recognized by the secretary insofar as these organizations do not have a financial relationship with any regional support network that would present a conflict of interest.

Sec. 3   RCW 71.24.300 and 2006 c 333 s 106 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) Upon the request of a tribal authority or authorities within a regional support network the joint operating agreement or the county authority shall allow for the inclusion of the tribal authority to be represented as a party to the regional support network.
     (2) The roles and responsibilities of the county and tribal authorities shall be determined by the terms of that agreement including a determination of membership on the governing board and advisory committees, the number of tribal representatives to be party to the agreement, and the provisions of law and shall assure the provision of culturally competent services to the tribes served.
     (3) The state mental health authority may not determine the roles and responsibilities of county authorities as to each other under regional support networks by rule, except to assure that all duties required of regional support networks are assigned and that counties and the regional support network do not duplicate functions and that a single authority has final responsibility for all available resources and performance under the regional support network's contract with the secretary.
     (4) If a regional support network is a private nonprofit entity, the department shall allow for the inclusion of the tribal authority to be represented as a party to the regional support network.
     (5) The roles and responsibilities of the private nonprofit entity and the tribal authorities shall be determined by the department, through negotiation with the tribal authority.
     (6) Regional support networks shall submit an overall six-year operating and capital plan, timeline, and budget and submit progress reports and an updated two-year plan biennially thereafter, to assume within available resources all of the following duties:
     (a) Administer and provide for the availability of all resource management services, residential services, and community support services.
     (b) Administer and provide for the availability of all investigation, transportation, court-related, and other services provided by the state or counties pursuant to chapter 71.05 RCW.
     (c) Provide within the boundaries of each regional support network evaluation and treatment services for at least ninety percent of persons detained or committed for periods up to seventeen days according to chapter 71.05 RCW. Regional support networks may contract to purchase evaluation and treatment services from other networks if they are unable to provide for appropriate resources within their boundaries. Insofar as the original intent of serving persons in the community is maintained, the secretary is authorized to approve exceptions on a case-by-case basis to the requirement to provide evaluation and treatment services within the boundaries of each regional support network. Such exceptions are limited to:
     (i) Contracts with neighboring or contiguous regions; or
     (ii) Individuals detained or committed for periods up to seventeen days at the state hospitals at the discretion of the secretary.
     (d) Administer and provide for the availability of all other mental health services, which shall include patient counseling, day treatment, consultation, education services, employment services as defined in RCW 71.24.035, and mental health services to children.
     (e) Establish standards and procedures for reviewing individual service plans and determining when that person may be discharged from resource management services.
     (7) The regional support networks, or its designee, shall provide consumer or advocate-run services.
     (a) The department shall not require a consumer or advocate-run service to maintain licensure under this chapter if the service is nonclinical. If a service is clinical, the service shall comply with the requirements for licensed services in this chapter.
     (b) Consumer or advocate-run services may include, but are not limited to:
     (i) Consumer and/or advocate-operated businesses;
     (ii) Clubhouses, including but not limited to the Fountain House model as certified by the International Center for Clubhouse Development;
     (iii) Crisis services;
     (iv) Advocacy and referral services;
     (v) Vocational and employment services;
     (vi) Self-help and peer counseling and support groups;
     (vii) Community presence in state hospitals; and
     (viii) Mental health advance directive training.
     (8) A regional support network may request that any state-owned land, building, facility, or other capital asset which was ever purchased, deeded, given, or placed in trust for the care of the mentally ill and which is within the boundaries of a regional support network be made available to support the operations of the regional support network. State agencies managing such capital assets shall give first priority to requests for their use pursuant to this chapter.
     (((8))) (9) Each regional support network shall appoint a mental health advisory board which shall review and provide comments on plans and policies developed under this chapter, provide local oversight regarding the activities of the regional support network, and work with the regional support network to resolve significant concerns regarding service delivery and outcomes. The department shall establish statewide procedures for the operation of regional advisory committees including mechanisms for advisory board feedback to the department regarding regional support network performance. The composition of the board shall be broadly representative of the demographic character of the region and shall include, but not be limited to, representatives of consumers and families, law enforcement, and where the county is not the regional support network, county elected officials. Composition and length of terms of board members may differ between regional support networks but shall be included in each regional support network's contract and approved by the secretary.
     (((9))) (10) Regional support networks shall assume all duties specified in their plans and joint operating agreements through biennial contractual agreements with the secretary.
     (((10))) (11) Regional support networks may receive technical assistance from the housing trust fund and may identify and submit projects for housing and housing support services to the housing trust fund established under chapter 43.185 RCW. Projects identified or submitted under this subsection must be fully integrated with the regional support network six-year operating and capital plan, timeline, and budget required by subsection (6) of this section.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   The sum of five million dollars, or as much thereof as may be necessary, is appropriated for the biennium ending June 30, 2009, from the general fund to the department of social and health services for the purposes of this act.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   This act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect July 1, 2007.