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NAMI Minnesota Legislative Update July 26, 2020Second Special Session Ends with Mixed ResultsThe House and Senate adjourned the second special session of 2020 with mixed results. The House and Senate were able to reach a compromise on a police reform package, but the legislature was unable to pass a bonding bill. With aging infrastructure and uncertain economic outlook, it is very disappointing that a deal could not be found. The primary opposition was from the Republican minority in the House, who were unwilling to vote for a bonding bill without ending or significantly limiting the Governor's authority under the public health emergency.Thankfully, the legislature was able to move forward a number of significant police reforms, which are detailed below. We are especially grateful for the leadership of Rep. Carlos Mariani and the People of Color and Indigenous (POCI) caucus to move this legislation through the process, as well as the willingness of the Senate Majority to work towards a compromise.The legislature is very likely to reconvene for a third special session should Governor Walz extend the public health emergency in August. However, passing a bonding bill will be more difficult the closer we get to the 2020 general election. There is an urgent need to develop more affordable housing and public housing buildings need renovations right now. Thank you to everyone who contacted their legislators about the importance of police reforms and a bonding bill. To learn more about everything that happened during the regular and both special sessions, related to mental health, attend a post-session recap on Monday, July 27 from 5:00 - 6:30 PM on zoom. You can HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" register here. To read the updated end of session legislative summary, click HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" here.Police Reform Package Passes in Second Special SessionThe House and Senate reached an agreement late on Monday night before ending the second special session and passed a police reform package. The final package was signed by Governor Walz on Thursday, almost two months after the police accountability measures drafted by the People of Color and Indigenous (POCI) Caucus in response to the killing of George Floyd were introduced. We are happy to share that NAMI language around police training was included in the package along with other measures to protect people with mental illnesses in police encounters. NAMI’s police training language:Requires six hours of the 16 hours on continuing education be on mental illness crisis training for all peace officers every three-year licensure cycle. This includes using scenario-based training and covering the following topics:techniques for relating to individuals with mental illnesses and the individuals' families;techniques for crisis de-escalation;techniques for relating to diverse communities and education on mental illness diversity;mental illnesses and the criminal justice system;community resources and supports for individuals experiencing a mental illness crisis and for the individuals' families;psychotropic medications and the medications' side effects;co-occurring mental illnesses and substance use disorders;suicide prevention; mental illnesses and disorders and the symptoms.;training on children and families of individuals with mental illnesses to enable officers to respond appropriately to others who are present during a mental illness crisis. Requires the Peace Officers Standards and Training (POST) Board to consult with DHS and mental health stakeholders to create a list of approved courses and training providers and to share the list with law enforcement agencies across the state.Requires law enforcement agencies to document the training officers receive and submit it to the POST Board. This includes who the provider of the training was, evaluations of the training and an explanation of expenditure of funds.The POST Board must include an evaluation of the effectiveness of the training in reducing the use of force against people in a mental health crisis in their annual compliance report.Appropriates $145,000 in fiscal year 2021 for mental illness crisis training and $137,000 every year after that.Other important measures in the legislation for people with mental illnesses include:States that the legislative intent about use of force is that is that is should be used only in defense of human life or great bodily harm and that peace officers must exercise special care when interacting with people with physical, mental health, developmental, or intellectual disabilities as they may not be able to understand or comply with commands. Prohibits the use of deadly force if a person poses a threat to themselves, but no one else.Creates the Ensuring Police Excellence and Improving Community Relations Advisory Council. The 15-member council includes five law enforcement representatives, four members appointed by the legislature, and six community members including a member appointed by NAMI Minnesota. The council will meet at least quarterly, assist the POST Board in regulating peace officers and offering citizen involvement, and provide an annual report to the legislature with recommendations for improvement.Protects the privacy of first responders who participate in peer counseling and critical incident stress management sessions. A peer support counselor or critical incident stress management team member may not share information gathered in a session, with a third party, unless there is a safety risk or permission is given. This allows first responders to seek help without fear that sensitive information disclosed for mental health reasons will be used against them in an investigation or negatively impact their career.Requires four hours of training on autism with similar standards and documentation but adds pre-service training. The reform package also includes general police accountability measures:Creates an Independent Use of Force Investigations Unit within the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension to investigate all officer-involved deaths and criminal sexual conduct cases. The unit expires August 1, 2024.Allows cities and counties to offer incentives for officers to work in the same city or county in which they live.Bans chokeholds and certain restraints unless an officer it's needed to protect an officer or another person from death or great bodily harm.Requires more reporting of use of force data.Increases the civilian representation on the POST Board by two members and requires three current or former officers and one civilian representative on any subcommittee that would investigate licensure actions.Prohibits “warrior-style” training, or training that dehumanizes people and results in an increased likelihood or willingness to use deadly force.Further use of force reform including a duty to intercede in excessive use of force by witnessing officers and requiring updated use of force model policies from the POST Board by September 1, 2020.Arbitration reform that creates a roster of six arbitrators with specific training requirements to handle all grievance procedures for peace officers.Thank you to everyone who contacted your legislators to advocate for reform. While this package is one of the largest police reform efforts in state history, HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" many in the community see it only as a start, pointing out many issues that were absent from the package. The package did not include appropriations to quickly connect rural police departments to mobile crisis teams that was originally agreed to in the first special session. Partisan politics intensified by disagreements over the COVID-19 peacetime emergency contributed to the already contentious issue. NAMI will continue to advocate for providing non-police responses to crises through our mental health system and criminal justice reform to decriminalize mental illnesses in our state. You can read more coverage of the reforms in this HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" MinnPost article and this HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" MPR story.NAMI and Providers Worried About Student Mental HealthNo matter what happens in the fall - distance learning, in-school instruction or a hybrid - students' mental health is a large concern. The Kaiser Family Foundation found that parents from communities of color were more likely to want to wait to start in-person learning. Read the release HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" here. In a letter to the Administration, NAMI Minnesota, Aspire MN and MACMHP along with school-linked mental health providers outlined their concerns: COVID-19 has placed extraordinary stress on the children and their families.?Uncertainty, loss of income, fear of catching COVID, grief over the loss of being able to celebrate major life events, grief over the loss of loved ones, economic struggles, food insecurity and more, have had a negative impact on all Minnesotans, but especially families with children. COVID-19 can be likened to a disaster and we know that people who experience a disaster are at greater risk of PTSD or anxiety. School closures after other disasters, such as earthquakes, have led to heightened anxiety among children. The killing of George Floyd has also led to increased stress and trauma in our communities of color. This has had a huge impact on children. As you look to make decisions about how education will be delivered this fall, we ask that you take into consideration the following issues:There are more children than ever that are struggling with their mental health Many children have experienced trauma during COVID-19, including just dealing with the unpredictability caused by COVID-19Mental health providers have had to lay off therapists as schools closed and not all children could transition to telehealthSchool staff and teachers are also struggling with their mental health which could increase if children are back in the classroomTo address these issues, we ask that you consider the following actions:Preserve school-linked mental health grants and provide more flexibility. If children stay at home, even partially, funds need to be used to support the entire family. If a parent needs support, allow the providers to do that – including therapy. Allow the providers to teach the parents (in addition to or instead of the teacher) the strategies that will help their child succeed academically, especially if distance learning or a hybrid is used. Allow families to connect directly with the provider instead of being triaged by the school staff. Teachers will not have all the children in the classroom at once to be able to notice if a child is struggling with their mental health. Relying on teachers and staff to identify and refer students will result in children needing help not receiving it – while at the same time providers do not have full caseloads. ?Allow providers to help support the emotional health of teachers and staff. ?To optimize access to school based mental health providers, assure that providers have access to their school-based offices, regardless of whether the school is open or not, for the purpose of in-person or telehealth therapies. Prepare schools to address trauma.Teachers and parents need education and support around the impact of the trauma caused by COVID-19. They need to know how to respond to children. Focusing solely on academics, including “catching up” may leave even more children behind. Children cannot be successful academically if they are struggling with their mental health. Teachers will need to know more about how to respond to questions, how to decrease the level of distress and to teach coping skills. MDE should provide webinars on trauma informed schools to help teachers and staff distinguish between disruptive behaviors and symptoms of trauma. Promote mental health resources.Every school district should list the mental health resources available in the community (limit to Medicaid and free and reduced clinics), and especially any school-linked mental health providers, so that families know where to go for help.?This information can be on their website and social media platforms. ?Promote screening, social emotional learning, and wellness activities. Whether students are in the school, doing distance learning or a combination, schools need to be promoting screening (or awareness of symptoms) to staff and parents.?Providing social emotional learning for younger students will provide them with the tools they need to have during the pandemic. Promoting wellness activities such as deep breathing, mindfulness and other activities will help everyone – staff, teachers, parents, and students.Allow Intermediate districts or cooperatives to open. These schools serve very high need children. These families, in particular, have struggled to teach their children at home. Many had one-to-one paraprofessionals. The classrooms are often small – typically less than 10 students per classroom. If it’s not feasible to open these schools, additional supports need to be provided to these children in their homes. ?Encourage districts to provide transportation to day treatment. Day treatment is a critical service for children with intensive mental health needs as within the day treatment setting children can access therapy, skill building and a supportive environment that helps them to manage their mental illness at home. Transportation to day treatment is essential for children to access services. A second letter was sent to request financial support to keep school-linked mental health programs open and able to meet the needs of students and their families.Find out who represents you HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" Click hereNews from the State LevelWhat are Your Experiences with Telehealth?Providers, insurers and health systems are evaluating the effectiveness of telehealth. Even the Department of Human Services is looking at it. NAMI Minnesota recently created a HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" survey to hear from you - people with mental illnesses and their families - about how telehealth has worked for you. We especially want to hear from people who didn't use it, people who could only use a phone for telehealth, and parents of children. It takes about 10 minutes to complete. Thank you!PS - have you tried to get your insurance to pay for a PRTF (psychiatric residential treatment center) and been denied? Please email us at HYPERLINK "mailto:namihelps@" \t "_blank" namihelps@ New Housing Benefit Began Last WeekOn July 20, the Department of Human Services (DHS) rolled out a new housing benefit for seniors and people with disabilities under Medical Assistance. In order to be eligible, someone must have a disability (which can includes a mental illness), and (1) be homeless or at risk of experiencing homelessness or (2) Living in an institutional or segregated setting or be at risk of placement in such a setting. The benefit will support people to:Transition into housingIncrease long-term stability in housing in the communityAvoid homelessness or institutionalization in the futureIt is exciting to have a stable funding stream to support people find and keep housing in the community. However, there will be implementation challenges. This benefit is broken down to include Housing Consultation and Housing Sustaining Services. Unless there is a provider shortage, people will not be able to access both consultation and sustaining services from the same provider due to federal conflict of interest standards. This conflict of interest policy will be challenging for many people experiencing homelessness to navigate, particularly if they are receiving case management and housing services from the same provider. To learn more, you can check out the HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" provider page from DHS or more general information at HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" Housing Benefits 101. The Star Tribune has also covered the new benefit in a HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" recent article.St. Cloud Finding Success with Co-Responder ModelThe St. Cloud Police Department, CentraCare health, Stearns County, and the Central Minnesota Mental Health Center have been collaborating since March with a co-responder model where a police officer and a mental health professional travel together to respond to people experiencing a mental health crisis. Without the expertise and support of a mental health professional, police officers in St. Cloud found themselves with limited options - either dropping people experiencing a mental health crisis at a jail or bringing them to an emergency room, where they rarely met the criteria for admission to a hospital. Under the co-responder model, the person with a mental illness is able to be evaluated on site and then get referred for treatment. To learn more about this promising model, you can read this HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" article from the St. Cloud Times.Department of Corrections Reopens Prisons for VisitorsThe Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) has reopened in-person visiting at some facilities around the state. Following the same Department of Health guidelines used in congregate living settings, if a facility has had two or more confirmed cases of COVID-19 (staff or resident) visiting will be closed. The Facilities currently open for visiting are Togo, Willow River, Rush City, Red Wing (adult), and Faribault. Facilities currently closed to in-person visiting are Stillwater, St. Cloud, Lino Lakes, Shakopee, and Oak Park Heights. Due to a construction project, the Moose Lake facility will open visiting on August 5th. The DOC has released these guidelines for safe visiting:Visitors can call to schedule their first in-person visit at facilities that are reopening visiting. (Scheduling calls to Moose Lake can begin on August 1).All visits must be scheduled. You can schedule a visiting appointment by calling the facility, during visiting hours, and at least 24 hours in advance.All visits are limited to one hour in duration, extended visits are not able to be offered at this time due to the need for social distancing in the visiting rooms.All visitors must be screened, including temperature checks. If the temperature check is 100.0 degrees or higher, the visit cannot occur.Barrier masks are required for all visitors over the age of 2.Visits will take place with social distancing protocols in place, including staying 6 feet apart at all times. Physical contact is not permitted during any portion of the visit.Activities for children in the visiting room will be limited to best maintain social distancing and limit touching of surfaces in an effort to reduce exposure to COVID-19.You can find more information about visiting HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" here and general COVID-19 updates from the DOC HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" here.News from Federal LevelCelebrating the ADA TodayOn this day in 1990 the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed into law. Justin Dart, the "father" of the ADA envisioned "a revolution that confronts and eliminates obsolete thoughts and systems, that focuses the full power of science and free-enterprise democracy on the systematic empowerment of every person to live his or her God-given potential." Justin was also the person who said "Vote as if your life depended on it…because it does.” NAMI Minnesota's executive director, who at that time was the executive director of Arc of Minnesota was at the signing. She said it was an incredible experience. "Seeing a human rights bill of this magnitude finally pass and be signed into law was inspiring. There were several events that day, and we heard speeches from the author, Iowa Senator Tom Harkin, and two senators who were strong advocates - Kennedy, and from Minnesota, Dave Durenberger. I was there with Minnesotans who fought hard for this law, including Irving Martin and Margo Imdieke, and we were all so proud of the grassroots organizing that made it possible. ""The ADA is one of America's most comprehensive pieces of civil rights legislation that prohibits discrimination and guarantees that people with disabilities have the same opportunities as everyone else to participate in the mainstream of American life -- to enjoy employment opportunities, to purchase goods and services, and to participate in State and local government programs and services. Modeled after the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin – and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 -- the ADA is an "equal opportunity" law for people with disabilities."Information Session on Federal Funding for Mental Health ProvidersThe Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) will be hosting a webinar on Monday, July 27 from 3-4 PM ET to provide information on how mental health care providers can access available Medicaid funds and the HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" CARES Act provider relief fund in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. If you're interested, you can HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" register for the webcast here. HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" Applications are due by August 3.Updates from NAMI MinnesotaNAMI Legislative CommitteeMeetings are held on the second Tuesday of every month at 6 PM. To be added to the email list, contact HYPERLINK "mailto:ssmith@" \t "_blank" Sam Smith. NAMI Minnesota | 1919 University Ave. W., Ste. 400 | St. Paul, MN 55104 HYPERLINK "mailto:namihelps@" \t "_blank" namihelps@ | HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" htttp:// 651-645-2948 | 1-888-NAMI-HELPS HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" ? HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" ? HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" ? HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" ABOUT NAMI HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" GET INVOLVED HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" EDUCATION HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" SUPPORT HYPERLINK "" \t "_blank" CONTACT USCopyright ? 2020. All Rights Reserved. ................
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