Mental
Health Association in New York State, Inc. |
Friday Fax from Albany
Tom and Big Mo(mentum): As the cloud-veiled sun rose over the Capitol Wednesday morning, a bleary-eyed Tom O’Clair trudged back to his truck, thanking those who had sat in the cold and occasional rain during his overnight vigil. In memory of Timothy O’Clair’s 16th birthday, Tom, side-by-side with Donna, had sat in front of the capitol all night, much like he had “Held vigil in the hospital the night Timmy was born,” he said. This time, instead of waiting for a baby, Tom was waiting for the State Senate. For more than a week, advocates for Timothy’s Law have been applying pressure, calling on the Senate to act on Timothy’s Law. Well covered press conferences including an ever growing number of supporters and organizations, the latest push culminated with Tom’s vigil. Joined by family and friends, including one of Timothy’s closest friends, and a small band of hearty advocates, the vigil attracted statewide attention. As a result, the momentum shift was palpable. Although the Senate did not pass Timothy’s Law, Senate Majority Leader Bruno did tell the news media that “We’re going to do Timothy’s Law.” Yet, in the next breath, Senators Bruno and Libous, the bill’s sponsor, again said that the bill that the Assembly passed and that 34 Republican Senators have co-sponsored is too broad. In a third breath, the Senate also passed a bill, S.5646-A, which creates a network of three eating disorders treatment centers, and provides them full insurance coverage for physical and mental health needs. Parsing through the breaths, we glean that the Senate is “Going to do Timothy’s Law”, Timothy’s Law is “too broad”, and when it comes to eating disorders, “We have to do something about it, something real." Maybe all those breaths have resulted in hyperventilation, because the actions lack any consistency. Or rather, it is possible that all the public pressure is starting to get through, and the momentum is shifting towards passage of Timothy’s Law. We’ve been told to expect a Senate parity bill within a week – its contents unsure. In recognition of that, and a with second offer from Senator Bruno in hand, Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver has already called for a Conference Committee on Timothy’s Law. From the elderly man stopping me to talk about my “Timothy’s Law” button in Dunkin’ Donuts, to editorial pages across the state, New Yorkers continue to wait for the Senate to act on Timothy’s Law. Stay tuned. The next few weeks will likely leave us all breathless. Samaritans To Hold 6th Annual Hope Candlelight Vigil on May 20th:On May 20, 2004, the Samaritans Suicide Prevention Center will hold its 6th Annual Hope Candlelight Vigil. This event not only memorializes the lives that have been tragically lost to suicide (through the faces on the NYS 1998 - 2004 LifeKeeper Memory Quilts), but will also work to save future lives through sharing, courage, and the commitment to the prevention of suicide. In addition, the Vigil serves to recognize those individuals dedicated to the prevention of suicide through the Annual LifeKeeper Memory Award. This year’s LifeKeeper Awards will be presented to NYS Assemblymember, and Timothy’s Law sponsor, Paul Tonko and Albany County Legislator E. Nancy Wiley. To RSVP for the Vigil, or for more details, go to http://timesunion.memlink.com/default.aspx?xsubmittype=GoSite&xsubmit=7002222 or see below. 6th
Annual Hope Candlelight Vigil 6:00 pm ~ Gather at Crowne Plaza (Albany) 6:30
pm ~ Silent Walk Welcome Prayer/Moment of Silence Remembering Reading of Names 7:00
pm ~ Reception/LifeKeeper Awards Presentation to Phone-In to Save Your Prescription DrugsMonday, May 10, 2004Right now, elected officials in Albany are trying to save a few pennies by limiting access to prescription drugs for the sickest and most vulnerable New Yorkers. Please
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Tell them:
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know who your Legislator is, but still want to call? Download the full PDF version of this flyer.In the News: A
father's vigil. Editorial Timothy O'Clair would have been 16 years old today. His father, Tom O'Clair of Schenectady, was planning an unusual visit to Albany last night in search of a gift to mark the occasion. O'Clair announced he would camp out overnight in front of the state Capitol in a dramatic appeal to the state Senate to pass legislation that has come to be known as Timothy's Law. It would require insurance companies to offer coverage for mental illness on a par with physical illness. O'Clair's campaign was born of personal tragedy. He and his wife, unable to afford adequate treatment for their son, surrendered custody of the boy to the state. In 2001, Timothy committed suicide at the age of 12. "I'm urging Senator Bruno: Give us something on Timothy's birthday," O'Clair said in announcing his vigil. "Don't let this birthday be another empty one. Show us you're willing to do something." Sen. Joseph Bruno is majority leader of the Republican-dominated Senate, which has failed to match the Democratic Assembly's passage of Timothy's Law. Sen. Thomas Libous, the Binghamton Republican who heads the Senate Mental Health Committee, responded to O'Clair's dramatic plea by saying he was working on a "meaningful" bill, but one that would fall short of coverage parity by exempting small businesses. The Senate leadership has bought the insurance industry's argument that full parity would drive up costs, leading to more uninsured New Yorkers. That ignores the convincing financial arguments of advocates for Timothy's Law, including the Mental Health Association of New York State. In March, the association presented figures that showed that passage of the law could save New York more than $218 million in Medicaid and other costs associated with mental illness. A 2003 national study by the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, which said the U.S. mental-health system was "in shambles," estimated that untreated mental illness costs the nation about $300 billion a year. The cost in human terms is equally staggering. The O'Clairs were not alone in being driven to give up a child so that treatment could be obtained through the courts, Medicaid and residential placements. The Mental Health Association estimated there were 3,500 such cases of relinquished custody a year in the state, a number that is growing. It appears that Tom O'Clair won't find the birthday present he was hoping to wring out of the Senate. Clearly, he won't be alone in his disappointment.
Family
Pressures Senate to Pass Timothy's Law. By Erin Duggan Assembly approves bill to require better health insurance coverage for mental illness Timothy O'Clair would have turned 16 Wednesday, but a battle with mental illness ended with his suicide at age 12. Now, after more than three years of fighting for a law to improve health insurance coverage for mental illness, his parents and other advocates of Timothy's Law are doing a full-court press this week to push the state Senate to pass the bill. The law would require insurance companies to provide treatment for mental illness at the same coverage level provided for physical ailments. Advocates of Timothy's Law and families who have battled insurance companies over mental health coverage told their stories Monday inside the Legislative Office Building. The Democrat-controlled Assembly passed the bill Monday. A version was being completed for the GOP-led Senate. Tonight, O'Clair's family and other supporters will hold an all-night vigil on the Capitol steps. The goal, said Timothy's father, Tom O'Clair, is to show lawmakers, particularly Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno, that Timothy's Law isn't about "one lost little boy," but about an issue that affects many New Yorkers. "I'm urging Bruno to give us something on Timothy's birthday," said Tom O'Clair. "Don't let this be another empty one." But the Senate sponsor, Thomas Libous, R-Binghamton, said his bill won't be ready for at least 10 days. It will also differ from the Assembly bill in at least one significant way: It would exempt small businesses from having to offer full mental health coverage. But, Libous said, his bill still provides "meaningful parity" for mental health care. "We have an obligation to provide adequate mental health coverage for those who deserve it," Libous said. Some of Timothy's Law supporters said Monday they oppose exempting small businesses. Tom O'Clair declined comment on the Senate version without seeing it. The insurance industry and some business groups have been fighting the insurance mandate, saying it will raise premiums and could prompt companies to scale back their insurance benefits. Instead of a state mandate, one insurance group said, coverage should be dictated by what consumers and their employers want. "If there is a demand in the market, if employers or individuals who are purchasing coverage want additional benefits, then insurers will respond," said Mark Amodeo, spokesman for the Conference of Blue Cross/Blue Shield Plans. Gov. George Pataki's office referred questions to the state Office of Mental Health, which has not taken a position on Timothy's Law. The agency says it has been difficult to get definitive numbers on how the law would affect insurance rates. Estimates, the agency said, range from almost nothing to an increase of 7 percent. "There is a good deal of contradictory information on both sides, and we are continuing to study the issue," said spokesman Roger Klingman.
After
Vigil, New Hope for Timothy's Law. By James Odato Joseph Bruno says he supports "mental health parity" measure The morning after an all-night vigil by advocates of Timothy's Law, the head of the GOP-led Senate said a bill to require insurance coverage of mental illness is coming. But with indications that the Senate version will be more limited than the Democrat-led Assembly bill, it is unclear whether the legislation will become law this year. Timothy's Law is named for Timothy O'Clair, a Rotterdam boy who killed himself at age 12 after his parents had difficulty affording care for his repeated bouts of depression. He would have turned 16 on Wednesday. Supporters of the "mental health parity" measure that would require insurers to cover substance abuse and mental health treatments have lobbied at the Capitol all week. A small group conducted an overnight vigil through Wednesday morning, including Timothy's father. "We're going to do Timothy's Law," said Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, R-Brunswick. "We met with Timothy's family. We're so sympathetic to what happened to young Timothy and others like that." Bruno, however, said the Assembly's version of the bill was too broad and costly to the health care system. He did not divulge details of the Senate measure, but its sponsor, Sen. Thomas Libous, has said he wants to exclude small employers from having to provide mental health insurance coverage. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver seized on Bruno's statement that he would be willing to go to conference committee discussions to resolve differences. "Too many men, women and children are fighting depression, anxiety and a host of other mental illnesses to ignore the need to establish mental health parity," Silver said... The potential movement on Timothy's Law came as the Senate passed a measure to help people with eating disorders. The bill would establish comprehensive care centers for anorexia nervosa and bulimia sufferers, and require insurers to cover treatments. Leslie Moran, a lobbyist for the Health Plan Association, said the eating disorder measure would force coverage on a smaller group of people in New York than Timothy's Law. The association has lobbied against Assemblyman Paul Tonko's health parity bill, which passed overwhelmingly the past two years in the lower chamber, saying it would significantly increase premium costs for employers. Paige Macdonald, leader in the lobbying for Timothy's Law, noted the provisions in the eating disorder measure are similar to terms her group seeks. Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, who has introduced several measures dealing with obesity and poor eating habits, applauded the Senate's passage of the eating disorder bill. He vowed to work toward an Assembly vote on the measure.
Senate
Proposes Health Coverage for Eating Disorders. By Karen DeWitt The New York State Senate wants to require health insurance companies to pay for better coverage for eating disorders. Supporters of the mental health parity bill known as Timothy's Law, say they'd like those mandates extended to other types of mental illness, as well. The bill, backed by Senate Majority Republicans, would set up three comprehensive centers in New York State to treat eating disorders. It would also require health insurers to pay for coverage when a patient is sent to one of the clinics. Lynne Grefe, whose daughter suffers from the disease, now heads the National Eating Disorders Association. She says families have gone broke trying to provide the proper care for children who develop anorexia or bulimia. "I meet people who have taken out second mortgages on their homes, I meet people who are going through their retirement accounts ," she said. "The reason being you can't watch your loved one die. But there is no support from the health care system." Grefe says it's estimated that only one third of those who suffer from anorexia get proper treatment, and only 6% of bulimics get the help they need. The diseases most commonly develop in teenaged girls, although a smaller percentage of boys also get the disorders. The legislation is backed by some well-known women who've suffered from eating disorders. They include Jenny Lauren, niece of fashion designer Ralph Lauren. Jenny Lauren has written a book chronicling her harrowing experiences with bulimia, and the damage it caused to her body. At the same time that the Senate wants to expand health care coverage for eating disorders, mental health advocates are trying to get comprehensive coverage for all forms of mental illness. The legislation the groups are backing is known as Timothy's Law, named after Timothy O'Clair, a mentally ill boy who killed himself at age 12. Timothy's father, Tom O'Clair, held a chilly all night vigil outside the Capitol Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, on what would have been Timothy's 16th birthday. O'Clair had begged Senator Bruno to pass Timothy's Law. The Senate leader says that his house will pass a bill that expands health care coverage to more types of mental illness within the next couple of weeks. "We're so sympathetic to what happened to young Timothy and to others like that, " said Bruno. "We want to do something about it and we're going to do something about it, and we're going to do it this year." The Senate bill differs from the version of Timothy's Law passed by the Assembly. The Senate bill offers some exemptions for small businesses. Senator Bruno says the current legislation, as written, would have an adverse effect on the health care system, and the added costs could lead to as many as two million more uninsured. Mental health advocates dispute those numbers.. Managed care companies do not support Timothy's Law, but they do back bill to create eating disorder clinics. Leslie Moran, with the New York Health Plan Conference, says the centers help to ensure that health care dollars are spent on the right treatment. The percentage of people with eating disorders is much smaller than the number of people with all mental illnesses. An Assemblyman who has been active in fighting obesity says he is now sponsoring a similar bill to set up eating disorder centers in the state. Assemblyman Felix Ortiz says he hopes he can convince his colleagues in the Majority Democratic Party in his house to agree to the legislation.
Hats
off to those who support passage of Timothy's Law. Letter to the Editor My hat is off to Mark Costello for his April 23 letter to the editor. It appears as though Mr. Costello and many, many other New York citizens are in favor of the passage of Timothy's Law out of great concern for New York's very vulnerable children. Unfortunately, for reasons not adequately explained, it appears that the majority of Republican senators is content keeping the proposed legislation right where it is, in the Mental Health Committee chaired by Sen. Thomas Libous, the lead sponsor of the bill. Most New Yorkers believe they live in a democracy. Sadly, when it comes to the legislative process, i.e. getting a piece of legislation to the floor so that it can be voted on, everything most often depends on one single individual. That one person is usually the committee chairman, who often takes the lead as sponsor, not so a bill can be passed or not passed but to control it so that it never gets to the floor. The other senators support this process wholeheartedly. In the case of Timothy's bill, leading opponents would be the pharmaceutical and insurance companies -- lobbyists who contribute big dollars to political campaigns. I support Mr. Costello's suggestion that the Times Union take the lead in contacting the comptroller and attorney general's office to find out who specifically are the big contributors and to whom the contributions are being made. Beyond that, each individual can write to legislators, requesting under the Freedom of Information Act a list of contributors and the amount contributed to their political campaigns. I believe that most of us are sick and tired of the games that are played in Albany. Those games ultimately impact the lives of our families so that the legislators can pay allegiance to those wealthy companies who only care about themselves and are willing to spend big money to influence those who are in Albany supposedly representing the people. We who put these people in office have a right to demand accountability. It seems to me that the politicians will never clean up their acts unless we insist they do so. We have been too compliant and too indifferent. We all have a share in this responsibility. Marilyn
R. Wessels,
Timothy's
Law would save businesses money. Letter to the Editor Your April 23 article "No free ride when workers work sick" is correct -- businesses suffer when their employees are ill, through productivity losses and absenteeism. While your article focuses on physical ailments, businesses are also greatly affected by mental illness, which often goes untreated. In fact, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association, U.S. employers lose $44 billion annually due to lost productivity from depression alone. You don't have to look further than my own experience to see the effect of untreated mental illness on an employer. I lost more than 800 hours of work at one of the two jobs I had at the time while trying to get my son, Timothy, the mental health services he needed. However, because of the discriminatory limits placed on mental health services in nearly all health insurance policies, my wife and I were unable to provide Timothy with the treatment he needed, and he took his own life three years ago in March. Unfortunately, the bill named in his memory -- Timothy's Law -- is currently stalled in the Senate by Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno, who says it's "too broad and too expensive." In reality, Timothy's Law will not only help decrease the cost measured in lives lost, but will ultimately lead to decreased costs for New York businesses, through increased productivity and decreased absenteeism. Tom
O'Clair, Effects
eased from Four Winds.
By James T. Mulder It would have been far worse if the state had closed Hutchings, supporters say. The effects of Friday’s shutdown of Four Winds mental hospital would be far worse had the state carried through with plans to close Hutchings Psychiatric Center, Hutchings advocates say. Gov. George E. Pataki proposed closing the 136-bed state hospital in Syracuse in 2001 and again in 2003, but shelved the idea after the plan sparked intense opposition from families, Hutchings workers and elected officials. The state Office of Mental Health forced Four Winds, a private 107-bed mental hospital in Syracuse, to close after inspectors found serious deficiencies at the facility. That closing wiped out 64 beds for children and teenagers at Four Winds, leaving the community with only 16 psychiatric beds for youngsters at Hutchings. “It would be 10 times worse if Hutchings wasn’t here, “said Joseph E. Tomassone, a psychologist and member of the Steering Committee to Keep Hutchings Open. “We take no comfort in what happened at Four Winds. We think it completely drives home the point that Hutchings must remain in our community because it is the safety net for our community.” If both mental hospitals were gone, “it would be an absolute nightmare,” Tomassone said. The Pataki administration maintains that the state’s psychiatric hospital system is too big and costly. Instead of getting inpatient services at Hutchings, patients from Syracuse would have had to go to the state’s Mohawk Valley Psychiatric Center in Utica – about an hour’s drive from here – under Pataki’s proposal. Since Four Winds stopped admitting new patients in March, some area youngsters who need hospitalization have gone to Mohawk and to other facilities as far away as Buffalo and Saratoga Springs. M. Marlene Ryan, an adolescent psychologist also involved in the Hutchings committee, said sending youngsters to distant hospitals is bad because it makes it difficult to keep families involved in the treatment process. If both hospitals were closed, some parents might opt to keep seriously disturbed youngsters who need hospitalization at home, she said. “All we would need is one kid committing suicide because we decided these services weren’t needed,” she said. Ryan and Tomassone said it’s difficult for for-profits hospitals like Four Winds to successfully treat disturbed youngsters who are in foster care and on Medicaid. “You can’t make money on the mentally ill,” Ryan said. Medical insurance coverage for mental health is limited. When insurance coverage runs out, a for-profit hospital’s clinical decisions might be guided more by economics than what’s best for the patient, Tomassone said. Joseph Glazer, President of the Mental Health Association in New York State said the Four Winds shut down will make it difficult for Pataki to make the case again in the future for closing Hutchings. “If Hutchings were to close on top of Four Winds, psychiatric options for people in your community would be all but eliminated,” Glazer said. “There has to be some level of access to inpatient hospital services in that community.” Tomassone said he would like to see Hutchings expanded. “A huge chunk of the service network is gone and the strain is on the rest of the safety net,” he said. But Roger Kingman, speaking for the state Office of Mental Health, said there are enough psychiatric beds to meet the region’s needs. Senate
bid to lock up predators may be lost. By John Milgrim Albany – New York's Republican-led Senate tried again last week to keep sexual predators out of society for good, but chances of their plan becoming law remain slim. The Senate, by a 58-2 margin, approved legislation Wednesday meant to institutionalize dangerous sex offenders after they've been paroled from prison. The Democrat-led Assembly, however, has ignored similar proposals in the past, and civil libertarians said it would violate one of the most basic rights Americans enjoy. Sixteen other states already allow for the post-prison confinement of pedophiles and other sexual predators. Some even require chemical castration. "This hug-a-thug mentality we often have in the Assembly is just mind boggling," said Assemblyman Tom Kirwan, a Newburgh Republican pushing for civil confinement and leading a fight to keep the state from unloading paroled predators into Newburgh. "There's no curing these people. It's pathological. They have to abuse children." The Senate's proposal would let the state attorney general seek civil commitment and treatment of soon-to-be-paroled sex offenders deemed likely to commit more sex crimes. Inmates would be transferred to secure mental health institutions, only to be released when no longer a threat. Joe Glazer, president of the state Mental Health Association, agreed sexual predators are often released into society too early, but he panned the plan to institutionalize them in psychiatric wards. "Undoubtedly, people with mental-health needs have very little protection in our criminal justice system," he said. "Yet a proposal like this, which will place the predator in with the prey, will do nothing to resolve that issue." Eileen Larrabee, an Assembly spokeswoman, said the Legislature approved life sentences in 2000 for twice convicted sex predators. "The Assembly has been focused on increasing penalties on the front end," she said. The New York Civil Liberties Union issued a paper opposing the Senate bill, arguing it would "permit government to exercise one of the most serious intrusions on individual rights, forcible deprivation of liberty, based on the conclusion that an individual has a condition that predisposes that person to the commission of certain acts." State Sen. John Bonacic, R-C-Mount Hope, a lead sponsor of the bill, said the primary focus should instead be protecting the community. "I do think their [Assembly Democrats'] head is in the sand on this one in view of our experiences, and they should be held accountable for failure to act or even enter into a dialogue," Bonacic said.
Until
next time, we remain, |