2025 -- H 5452

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LC001123

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2025

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A N   A C T

RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN,

YOUTH AND FAMILIES

     Introduced By: Representatives Casimiro, Noret, Read, Place, Serpa, Alzate, Cotter,
Kislak, Shallcross Smith, and Tanzi

     Date Introduced: February 12, 2025

     Referred To: House State Government & Elections

     It is enacted by the General Assembly as follows:

     SECTION 1. Section 42-72-5.2 of the General Laws in Chapter 42-72 entitled "Department

of Children, Youth and Families" is hereby amended to read as follows:

     42-72-5.2. Development of a continuum of children’s behavioral health programs.

     (a) The departments of children, youth and families (DCYF) and human services (DHS)

shall cooperate to develop a design of a continuum of care for children’s behavioral health services

that encourages the use of alternative psychiatric and other services to hospitalization and reviews

the utilization of each service in order to better match services and programs to the needs of the

children and families as well as continuously improve the quality of and access to services. The

departments of children, youth and families and human services shall present a report to the

governor and the general assembly no later than February 1, 2006 that fully describes this

continuum of services and outlines a detailed plan for its implementation, including resource

requirements, responsibilities, milestones, and time frames, as well as a set of indicators and

program metrics that will be employed to evaluate its clinical and fiscal effectiveness over time.

The report shall also describe any and all changes proposed in program oversight or budgetary

responsibility for specific services. An important step towards the development of such continuum

of care is to assure the appropriate management of psychiatric hospitalizations. To that end the state

shall:

     (1) Amend contractual agreements with RIte Care health plans to reflect complete

responsibility for the management of psychiatric hospitalizations, specifically the development of

hospital diversion and post discharge services; and the utilization of crisis intervention services as

a requirement for authorization of a psychiatric admission for all children enrolled in RIte Care;

and

     (2) Issue a request for proposals to identify a contracted entity to reflect complete

responsibility for the management of psychiatric hospitalizations, specifically the development of

hospital diversion and post discharge services for crisis intervention services as a requirement for

authorization of a psychiatric admission for all Medicaid-eligible children not enrolled in RIte Care.

The request for proposals shall include a dispute resolution process.

     (b) It shall be the public policy of the state that the department of children, youth and

families be the chief state agency responsible for all matters related to children's behavioral health

including, but not limited to, contracting with whatever agencies are necessary to provide and

implement these services.

     SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

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EXPLANATION

BY THE LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL

OF

A N   A C T

RELATING TO STATE AFFAIRS AND GOVERNMENT -- DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN,

YOUTH AND FAMILIES

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     This act would provide that it is the public policy of the state that DCYF be the chief agency

responsible for all matters related to children's behavioral health.

     This act would take effect upon passage.

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