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June 21, 2006 URGENT! – LEGISLATORS MUST HEAR FROM CONSTITUENTS IF TIMOTHY’S LAW IS TO BECOME A REALITY IN 2006: As Tuesday night worked its way toward Wednesday morning, Timothy’s Law advocates anxiously awaited news from negotiations between the Assembly and Senate. The high level of anxiety was caused by the fact that advocates and legislators both know that the process by which a bill can be considered in either house of the state legislature is that a bill must “age” three days. And with time ticking away toward what is now, at least, one anticipated extra day that the legislature will be in Albany before adjourning for the year, advocates realized that in order for anything to be accomplished this year on Timothy’s Law, a “message of necessity” from the Governor would be necessary to bypass the three day “aging” process. Of course, advocates were hoping that the Assembly and Senate could have come to an agreement before Tuesday night at midnight, however that was not realized. The up-side of this situation is that it provides additional time for those who believe that discrimination in insurance coverage for those with both mental health and addiction needs to let their legislators know that they expect them to address this issue before returning from Albany. At this point in the process, it is imperative that everyone who believes that systemic changes are due regarding the mental health and addiction services available to New Yorkers to contact both their Senator and Assemblymember, along with the respective leaders in each house (Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver) and articulate support for a comprehensive parity bill that provides coverage for both mental health and addiction needs. We must demonstrate the support that Timothy’s Law has to our elected leaders if this legislation is to become law. Call
your Senator and Senate Majority Leader Joe Bruno Call
your Assemblymember and Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver Tell
them that a comprehensive parity bill that includes coverage
‘BOOT
THE SHU’ AND HOUSING WAITING LIST CALLS NEEDED AS WELL:
A
similar article to this one was published in The Journal News ALBANY -- Lawmakers said they were negotiating feverishly Tuesday to broker a compromise on Timothy's Law, a bill that would require insurance companies to provide the same levels of coverage for mental health care as other medical services. "We're trying to get closer and closer together so that we could get something done, so that we could get some progress on the issue," Senate Mental Health Committee Chairman Thomas Morahan, R-New City, Rockland County, said. That's just one of many unresolved issues during the last week of the legislative session. Others include proposals to crack down on Medicaid fraud, issue property tax rebates, expand the state DNA databank, and keep dangerous sex offenders locked up even after they have completed their prison sentences. The Democrat-controlled Assembly has passed the so-called mental health parity bill annually for several years, this year in March by a vote of 134-9. But it's been held up by the GOP-led Senate. The Senate has demanded an exemption for small businesses and a possible waiver for companies that incurred a cost increase of 2 percent or more, but the Assembly has been firm that the mandate should apply to all companies. Part of the deal could be to give businesses a tax credit because of the extra cost, Morahan said. There are other differences to be broached. The Assembly wants substance abuse treatment covered. The Senate would limit coverage to more severe mental illnesses, such as bipolar disorder, major depression and schizophrenia. Assemblyman Paul Tonko, D-Amsterdam, Montgomery County, said he was cautiously optimistic lawmakers could work out a deal that would pass muster with Gov. George E. Pataki. "This is the right thing to do. Government needs to do the right thing," Tonko said. It's important to cover substance abuse treatment, Tonko said. Often, someone with a mental illness also has a substance abuse problem, he said. The bill is named for Timothy O'Clair, a 12-year-old Schenectady boy who hanged himself in 2001 after struggling with depression. His family had struggled to get care for Timothy after their insurance coverage for his illness ran out. Groups that support Timothy's Law say it would end discrimination against people with mental illness. Insurers who provide coverage for mental health and substance abuse services currently can charge higher deductibles or co-payments for those services. The issue is not one of discrimination, said Mark Amodeo, of the New York State Conference of Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans. There is evidence-based criteria to support the diagnosis, treatment and anticipated recovery for physical illness, he said. "Mental disorders on the other hand are more subjective in terms of diagnosis, treatment and recovery. In the case of chronic mental illness, for example, there is long-term, possibly lifelong unlimited treatment to consider," he said. Meanwhile, Pataki and Assembly Democrats continued to bash one another over the issue of expanding the DNA crime databank. Pataki held a news conference for the second consecutive day -- a sign that talks aren't going well -- to demand the Assembly pass a bill that requires anyone convicted of a felony or misdemeanor to submit a DNA sample. The Assembly wants to phase in such a plan over a number of years, saying state labs can't handle the potential influx -- and cost -- of a rapid expansion. Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, D-Manhattan, said Pataki is trying to appeal to conservative Republicans in Iowa and New Hampshire, a jab at Pataki's attempt to launch a presidential campaign. Pataki called that characterization "despicable."
Tom O’Clair and about three dozen of his partners in the effort to create a mental health parity law held “Timothy’s Law Night'’ at the Joseph L. Bruno Stadium in Troy Tuesday. Wearing matching T-shirts, they filled a small section of the park. Senate Majority Leader Joseph Bruno threw out the first pitch for the first home game this season of the Valley Cats and shook hands with some of the advocates and got his picture taken with some, O’Clair said. The group, usually lobbying in the Capitol, is pushing Bruno to accept their version of a bill that would make sure employers offered health insurance that covered treatments for mental illness. Bruno has said the bill is unaffordable for small businesses and could increase the number of uninsured if employers stopped offering health insurance because of the cost of so many mandated coverages.
Eliot
Spitzer appears to have slammed the door on the Working Families
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