N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law § 41.55: Community mental health support and workforce reinvestment program

* § 41.55 Community mental health support and workforce reinvestment

program.

(a) Community mental health support and workforce reinvestment funds

shall be annually allocated by the commissioner based upon the following

criteria:

(1) the efficiency and effectiveness of the use of funding within the

local governmental unit for the delivery of services to persons with

serious mental illness in order to assure that resources are made

available to fund mental health services to persons discharged into the

community; and

(2) other relevant factors that require the maintenance of existing

mental health services and the development of new mental health

services.

(b) Amounts provided pursuant to this section shall only be used to

fund mental health workforce related activities, including recruitment

and retention initiatives and training programs, and other general

programmatic activities to help ensure a stable mental health system.

Such grants and other funds shall not be used for capital costs

associated with the development of community mental health support and

workforce reinvestment services.

(c) Prior to entering into contracts for the provision of services

funded pursuant to subdivision (b) of this section, the office of mental

health and any local governmental unit receiving such funds shall

consider the following:

(1) the service needs of persons with serious mental illness,

including children and adolescents with serious emotional disturbances,

in the geographical area in which the community mental health support

and workforce reinvestment program operates;

(2) the capacity of the program to meet identified service needs and

specified performance standards related to access, admission, referral,

and service coordination and delivery;

(3) the extent to which community mental health support and workforce

reinvestment services authorized by the contract are consistent and

integrated with the plan prepared and approved pursuant to section 41.16

of this article and other applicable provisions of this article; and

(4) the reliability and capability of the provider, including its

expertise, prior experience, financial responsibility, record of

adherence to law, record of providing quality care and services, and

ability to deliver appropriate services in a cost-effective and

efficient manner to persons with serious mental illness. The

commissioner is authorized to promulgate regulations to establish

minimum contractual obligations in accordance with the provisions of

this subdivision.

(d) The commissioner is authorized and empowered to make inspections

and examine records of a local governmental unit receiving state aid

under this section or a provider of services funded pursuant to

subdivision (b) of this section. Such examination shall include all

medical, service and financial records, receipts, disbursements,

contracts, loans and other moneys relating to the financial operation of

the provider.

(e) The amount of community mental health support and workforce

reinvestment funds for the office of mental health shall be determined

in the annual budget and shall include the amount of actual state

operations general fund appropriation reductions, including personal

service savings and other than personal service savings directly

attributed to each child and adult non-geriatric inpatient bed closure.

For the purposes of this section a bed shall be considered to be closed

upon the elimination of funding for such beds in the executive budget.

The appropriation reductions as a result of inpatient bed closures shall

be no less than one hundred ten thousand dollars per bed on a full

annual basis, as annually recommended by the commissioner, subject to

the approval of the director of the budget, in the executive budget

request prior to the fiscal year for which the executive budget is being

submitted. The methodologies used to calculate the per bed closure

savings shall be developed by the commissioner and the director of the

budget. In no event shall the full annual value of community mental

health support and workforce reinvestment programs attributable to beds

closed as a result of net inpatient census decline exceed the twelve

month value of the office of mental health state operations general fund

reductions resulting from such census decline. Such reinvestment amount

shall be made available in the same proportion by which the office of

mental health's state operations general fund appropriations are reduced

each year as a result of child and adult non-geriatric inpatient bed

closures due to census decline.

(f) Additional reinvestment amounts shall be made available for

appropriation in the executive budget based upon state operation general

fund appropriations directly attributed to the co-location or closure of

psychiatric centers made pursuant to law. Such amount shall be made

available at the same proportion by which the office of mental health

state operations general fund appropriations are reduced each year as a

result of facility co-locations and closures.

(g) The annual community mental health support and workforce

reinvestment appropriation shall reflect the amount of state operations

general fund appropriation reductions resulting from subdivisions (e)

and (f) of this section. Within any fiscal year where appropriation

increases are recommended for the community mental health support and

workforce reinvestment program, insofar as projected inpatient census

decline or facility co-locations or closures do not occur as estimated,

and state operations general fund savings do not result, then the

reinvestment appropriations shall be made available, as needed, for

transfer from the office of mental health general fund-aid to localities

account to the office of mental health general fund-state purposes

account to pay for any necessary inpatient expenses. The total community

mental health support and workforce reinvestment appropriation also may

include such additional appropriations, as shall be determined to be

needed and approved by the legislature, to fund all the provisions of

this section.

(h) Amounts made available to the community mental health support and

workforce reinvestment program of the office of mental health shall be

subject to annual appropriations therefor. Up to fifteen percent of the

amounts so appropriated shall be made available for staffing at state

mental health facilities and at least seven percent of the remaining

funds may be allocated for state operated community services pursuant to

this section.

(i) For purposes of this section, the term "state operations general

fund" shall mean the office of mental health state operations general

fund appropriations before any offset from the special revenue

funds-other miscellaneous special revenue fund or mental hygiene patient

income account.

(j) No provision in this section shall create or be deemed to create

any right, interest or entitlement to services or funds that are the

subject of this act, or to any other services or funds, whether to

individuals, localities, providers or others, individually or

collectively.

(k) All appropriations for community mental health support and

workforce reinvestment services shall be adjusted in the following

fiscal year to reflect the variance between the initial and revised

estimates of census decline.

* NB Repealed March 31, 2027