Mental
Health Association in New York State, Inc. |
Friday Fax from Albany
Budget Comes Out on Tuesday, January 18th: On January 18th, the Governor will be introducing his budget for 2005-06. There has already been disagreement from several quarters about the size of the budget deficit ranging from as high as $6 billion to as low as $2 billion. The Governor has already identified in the State of the State that he plans on cutting Medicaid. We are also very concerned that there will be cuts to the Local Assistance budget which will directly impact many of our agencies. As soon as information becomes available, we will share it with all of you.
Legislature Returns - Assembly Attempts Restoration of Governor’s 2004 Vetoes: As the Assembly and Senate returned to Albany to begin the first real work of 2005, the Assembly passed legislation to override Governor Pataki’s vetoes from August of last year, totaling nearly $1.7B. Included in that legislation was money to restore the $4.5M in Local Assistance funding for mental health programs. These vetoes have negatively affected mental health agencies across the state, including many MHAs. According to media reports, Senate Majority Leader Bruno dismissed the Assembly’s restoration proposal. More details on this follow in an article published in the Albany Times Union included in this week’s Friday Fax from Albany. MHANYS encourages those who support restoration of these crucial funds to contact their representative in the NYS Senate by calling the Senate switchboard at (518) 455-2800 and asking for their Senator. Please urge members of the Senate to override the Governor’s vetoes from 2004 to restore funding for crucial mental health program in your community.
In the News: A
Case for Parity. Editorial One day in the not-so-distant future, New York state will wonder why it kept its head in the sand so long about mental illness. The state has yet to pass "Timothy's Law," which would require insurance companies to cover mental illness and chemical dependency the same way they cover physical infirmities. Unfortunately, some of the arguments against the law suggest that it is acceptable to withhold or ration care for the mentally ill. Timothy's Law is named after Timothy O'Clair, whose father, Tom, worked for the state Thruway Authority. Tom's insurance limited the services his son could receive for his erratic behavior and moods - 20 visits per year, one month in a facility. His parents gave up parental rights to Timothy so he could become a ward of the state and receive Medicaid, which ironically covers more mental health services than some private insurance. Their efforts came too late. Timothy hanged himself in 2000, a few months before his 13th birthday. The majority of the Legislature once supported Timothy's Law, but Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno and other lawmakers were concerned that the cost of providing equal coverage for mental health illnesses would hurt small businesses or force them to drop coverage altogether. But the state Mental Health Association points to a Price Waterhouse study that found the average New Yorker would pay just $1.26 per month - or $15 more per year. The agency says that four states with the same kind of coverage and 30 states with similar coverage have not adversely affected small businesses. The Assembly passed Timothy's Law last session with a $120 million tax credit meant to cushion small businesses. The Senate came up with its version of the law, which O'Clair called so "sub-substandard" that he would not allow his son's name to be attached to it. It would cover only certain mental illnesses, exempt many small businesses and would not cover chemical dependency. At the very least, the Senate has an obligation to document its contention that businesses may close or the ranks of the uninsured will increase if Timothy's Law is passed. But, in truth, an argument about money suggests that mental illness is not a legitimate health-care issue, but a candidate for "optional coverage." Such thinking continues the stigma attached to illnesses of the brain. Says Tom O'Clair, "The lack of parity cost my family Timothy. Tell me to my face that you can put a price on that." You can't. You shouldn't.
Law
fell victim to Albany politics. Editorial The failure of the state Legislature to pass "Timothy's Law" is an "excellent example of the gridlock that is Albany," says Michael Seereiter, public policy director for the Mental Health Association of New York State. The bill would require the same coverage for mental health illnesses and chemical dependency as is provided for physical illnesses. Seereiter says the bill enjoyed the support and sponsorship of a majority of lawmakers, but that the legislation was bottled up in the Senate's Mental Health Committee. He says the legislation has been blocked for a decade, even before it was named after Timothy O'Clair. But a spokesman for Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno said that such a portrayal is "inaccurate," and that while the senator has cost concerns, he does want to see the law passed. Whatever the intentions, Timothy's Law was a victim of Albany's system of governance. The leaders decide which bills the rank-and-file get to vote on - or each house ceremonially passes its own version. For example, during the last days of session last year, the Assembly passed a comprehensive version of Timothy's Law. The Senate offered a weaker version. The one-house bills assured that nothing would be accomplished. If a conference committee of members from each chamber could meet, debate and negotiate, perhaps the two sides could have reached some agreement. But it didn't happen. Neither did Timothy's Law.
Cynical
tactics prevent enactment of Timothy's Law. Letter to the Editor First, let me express appreciation for your story on Mary Ellen Clausen's struggles and her subsequent involvement in the Timothy's Law campaign. That campaign was initiated by Tom and Donna O'Clair, with a great deal of support from the Mental Health Association in New York State. While I recognize that human interest stories are a big draw for newspapers and other media, I wish that your reporter had taken more time to research the issue (insurance parity) and provide your readership with a more in-depth education on it. The State Mental Health Association and our local Onondaga County chapter have been pushing for insurance parity for more than 10 years. In each of those 10 years the state Assembly passed parity legislation, only to have it fail in the Republican-controlled state Senate. The tactic used was a simple one - refuse to vote the bill out of committee to the floor of the Senate for a vote. I recall one year when some Democrat used a parliamentary procedure to "sneak" the bill onto the floor of the Senate for a vote. After having stated their unequivocal support for parity, both of our state senators voted against it, citing the "breach" of procedure as the reason. This most recent legislative session once again saw both of our senators trumpeting their support for insurance parity under the Timothy's Law banner. In fact, they, along with a majority of Republican senators, were on record supporting Timothy's Law. In a moment of unusual candor, Sen. Bruno remarked that they could do that because they knew he would provide cover by not allowing a vote. So once again, the Republican leadership of the Senate kowtowed to campaign contributors and, in a moment that I can only describe as gut-wrenching to me, Sen. DeFrancisco stood on the Senate floor and denounced the very legislation he had initially supported, switching his allegiance to a watered-down bill that was nowhere near Timothy's Law - as Timothy's father Tom has noted. It troubles me that the important facts in a 10-year struggle to achieve real reform through insurance parity, which would have affected thousands of parents and families with even fewer resources than the O'Clairs or the Clausens (and saved state tax dollars to boot), get so little real attention. If your reporter is going to point out Sen. DeFrancisco's beneficence to Ophelia's Place and his vote in support of the creation of three eating disorders centers in New York, shouldn't you have given equal time to his having twice voted against Timothy's Law? If you want reform in Albany, please see to it that voters have all the facts. Alfred A. Fusco Alfred A. Fusco of Syracuse recently retired as executive director of the Mental Health Association of Onondaga County.
Bruno
rejects budget 'grandstanding.' By James M. Odato Senate leader says chamber won't follow Assembly in passing supplemental spending measure ALBANY -- The Assembly on Monday passed a nearly $1.7 billion supplemental budget bill, but Senate Majority Leader Joseph L. Bruno said he won't waste his chamber's time on such "grandstanding." Bruno, R-Brunswick, instead intends to announce today that the Senate will pass for the second time a budget reform measure Gov. George Pataki vetoed last year after unanimous support in the Assembly and Senate, Senate officials said. He also will announce that the Senate will again pass the alternative budget reform package that the Senate alone voted for in December and that Pataki seemed willing to endorse. And the newly elected Senate will pass for the second time, as required, legislation allowing the state constitution to be amended to adopt the changes called for in any reform bills that end up as law. The action comes after talks between the Senate and the Pataki administration in recent days failed to produce a new reform plan. In the Assembly, Democrats dominating the chamber passed the supplemental bill over Republican objections. Bruno called the supplemental bill "just grandstanding ... we're not going to play that game." The money -- most of it borrowed -- would have been largely for a six-year capital program for the state and city university systems. Also, $350 million would allow both public and private colleges to obtain grants for eligible higher education projects. Bruno said the supplemental bill is moot because Pataki would veto it, and the governor's 2005-2006 executive budget, to be released Jan. 18, would supersede it. Pataki called the measure another signal of the Assembly wanting to go on "an unaffordable spending binge." Assembly Higher Education Committee Chairman Ronald Canestrari, D-Cohoes, said the bill is aimed at pressuring Pataki to go along with the Legislature's desire to invest in New York colleges. "It's an important statement of policy and our need to push the governor," he said. Newly elected Assemblywoman Donna A. Lupardo, D-Binghamton, said she is ready to roll up her sleeves and do real work. She served on the Broome County Legislature from 1999-2000 and is the first woman to represent Broome County in the state Legislature. Lupardo is focused on working to build on her theme of real work. She thinks it starts with rebuilding trust in Albany. She has used this theme in the Greater Binghamton community, where they still face several challenges, including job loss, services to a growing senior population and young people leaving the region. Lupardo represents the 126th District, which includes the city of Binghamton and the towns of Vestal and Union. “We need a strong voice on behalf of Upstate New York,” she said. “Parochialism doesn’t work here. People across this community have to meet and come together to solve problems.” Originally from Staten Island, Lupardo moved to Broome County where she has lived for nearly 30 years. She is a graduate of Wagner College. In 1976 she moved to the Southern Tier region to attend graduate school at the State University of New York at Binghamton, where she received a master’s degree in philosophy. Lupardo was an adjunct lecturer at Binghamton University for 10 years before dedicating herself to community education. Until the election, Lupardo served as director of the Education Division of the Mental Health Association of the Southern Tier. Through her leadership, many programs and initiatives were developed to address community mental health needs such as teen suicide prevention and elderly depression. She has been an outspoken advocate for those experiencing mental illness and has received state and national recognition for her innovative use of the arts in mental health recovery. Lupardo has been active in Democratic politics for 20 years, serving as a committee member, campaign manager and mentor to new candidates. She served on many boards and advisory panels related to education, human services, environment conservation, downtown revitalization, and economic recovery. She is the recipient of many awards including the American Cancer Society Leadership Award, YMCA Alice Mills Award, Mental Health Association of New York State’s Esther Mallach Staff Leadership Award and the New York State Theatre Educators Association’s Educators Associations Administrator of the Year. Lupardo, who ran an independent campaign, defeated Republican Robert J. Warner in November’s election. Two years ago, she ran for the seat but came up short, finishing a strong second. “She brings maturity, intelligence and commitment to the office and will make us all proud,” said former state Assembly Majority Leader James R. Tallon. “Her victory after beating an incumbent, sends a strong message that Albany is expecting change,” he said. As Assemblywoman, she looks to rebuild trust in the Legislature and aims to work with those in public office, as well as businesses and labor leaders who normally don’t communicate with each other.
Until
next time, we remain, |