THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, August 21, 1995 TAG: 9508180594
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A6 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: Short : 46 lines
Debra Gordon's report ``Mental health plan upsets many'' (MetroNews, Aug. 4) regarding the proposed changes in mental-health services was informative and well-researched.
As a parent of an adult child with a mental illness, as well as a member of the Virginia Beach Community Services Board, I have a personal understanding of the difficulties associated with the state's proposed switch to a manged mental-health care system.
I find it hard to believe that a managed-care system would save money by improving Virginia's outpatient mental-health system's efficiency and still reduce the list of 10,000 people waiting for services.
How could this happen when the proposed managed-care organization would take 5 percent off the top of the CSB's state Medicaid funds?
CSBs have been able to reduce the census at state facilities and provide a full array of high-quality services despite the fact that in a study conducted recently by the Department of Mental Health, Mental Retardation and Substance Abuse, Virginia ranks 41st of the 42 responding states in spending for community services? Change is proposed to improve the CSB delivery system, which has been held up by legislators and state agency officials as one of the most effective and efficient models in the community.
I hope the city councils in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Newport News, Hampton and Poquoson realize that the funds taken away from the CSBs by the proposed state plan would have to come from additional city funds or those with mental illness would go without essential services.
As stated by Bevelacqua in his letter of resignation from the state board over this issue, ``The state commits local government, with no public discussion or consensus, to providing housing and support services not covered by the managed-care operator and acknowledges that its entire scheme is contrary to the current statutes and promises `extensive statutory revisions' in the responsibilities of CSBs and local government.''
FORREST M. SULLIVAN
Virginia Beach, Aug. 4, 1995 by CNB