Mental Health America of Hawai`i has a 67-year long record of advocating tirelessly for the needs and rights of people with mental health problems. Our current efforts are directed towards insuring that those with severe and persistent mental illness who are served by the State receive the quality services they deserve. If you want to get involved in our advocacy efforts, click here. We need your help to continue to alert and activate the public when people who need services are not getting them.
Today, strong advocacy is needed more than ever because of the draconian budget cuts which have reduced or eliminated a great many programs. For example, the following programs have been eliminated:
- Supportive Housing
- Assertive Case Management
- Shelter Plus Care for Homeless
- Outpatient Treatment
- Psychosocial Rehabilitation
- Community Based Intervention
- Transportation
- Supported Education
- Warm Line and Consumer Support Groups
- Respite
- Family Education
Also, case management hours have been dramatically cut, down to 3.5 hours per month per client, and eligibility – the diagnostic criteria for treatment -- has been narrowed, thereby reducing the state caseload by 30%.
MHA-Hawai`i raises the alarm about these cuts and speaks out to the media whenever possible to educate the public that by cutting back these services, we are not only putting people who have mental illness at risk, and devastating their families, but we are incurring additional expenses through increased Emergency Room visits, police arrests, incarceration, hospitalization, and homelessness.
Recent Advocacy
In the recent past, we (in partnership with others, of course) have successfully advocated to:
- Obtain parity in health insurance coverage for mental health problems – that is, a mental health problem will be covered equally as a physical health problem.
- Raise the Personal Needs allowance that people in residential care homes (the elderly and disabled, many of whom have mental illnesses) from $30 to $50 per month. This allowance is for personal hygiene needs, transportation, recreation, etc.
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Get a Psychiatric Advance Directive law passed; this is a legal document allowing a person to direct his or her mental health care in the event that he or she becomes unable to make or communicate decisions. Can spell out treatment preferences, identify people to make decisions on their behalf, etc.