13-R407
2013 -- H 6288
Enacted 07/16/13
J O I N T R E S
O L U T I O N
CREATING A
SPECIAL JOINT COMMISSION TO STUDY THE INTEGRATION OF PRIMARY AND BEHAVIORAL
HEALTH IN THE STATE OF
Introduced By: Representatives Bennett, Shekarchi, Tomasso, Abney, and Blazejewski
Date Introduced: June 26, 2013
WHEREAS, It is the long-standing policy of the State of
of the interests of life and health among the peoples of
the state, to make investigations into the
causes of diseases, the prevalence of epidemics and endemics
among the people, the sources of
mortality, the effect of localities, employments, and all other
conditions and circumstances on the
public health, do all in its power to ascertain the causes
and the best means for the prevention and
control of diseases or conditions detrimental to the public
health, and adopt proper and expedient
measures to prevent and control diseases and conditions
detrimental to the public health in the
state; and
WHEREAS, Population
health outcomes in
persistently and significantly worse for factors such as infant
mortality, prevalence of chronic
disease, serious mental illness, and life expectancy than in other
developed countries with similar
socio-economic resources; and
WHEREAS, The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration
(SAMHSA) and the Health Research and Services
Administration (HRSA) established the Center
for Integrated Health Solutions (CIHS) to promote the
development of integrated primary and
behavioral health services to better address the needs of
individuals with mental health and
substance use conditions; and
WHEREAS, Despite these inferior health outcomes, the global cost of
medical and other
health care services in the State of
in the world and imposes significant burdens on
business, government, families, and individuals;
and
WHEREAS,
mental health services, partly by requiring care providers
to collaborate with community
organizations and in-the-market resources; and
WHEREAS, The Rhode
Island Chronic Care Sustainability Initiative (CSI-RI), is one of
the first multi-payer patient-centered medical home
(PCMH) demonstration projects in the
country, with plans to expand the successful project; and
WHEREAS, In Rhode
Island, as in the nation as a whole, global medical and other health
care costs are projected to continue rising faster than
the gross national product, than family
income, and than the rate of inflation, and unless
effectively addressed, will soon become
unsustainable, threatening the economy, public budgets, and Rhode
Islanders’ access to
affordable care; and
WHEREAS, There is a
large body of data and other research that demonstrate the
potential for improving the public health and population-based
outcomes through improving the
delivery of and access to primary care that is community-based
and patient-centered; and
WHEREAS, Improving
population-based health outcomes and integrating behavioral
health and primary care will result in significant savings
by averting the costs incurred by treating
chronic diseases, premature death, and diminished
productivity at work and school; now
therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That a special joint commission be and the same
hereby is created and
shall consist of twenty-one (21) members: one of whom
shall be a member of the Senate, to be
appointed by the Senate President, who shall serve as
co-chairman; one of whom shall be a
member of the House, to be appointed by the Speaker of the
House, who shall serve as co-
chairman; one of whom shall be the Director of the Department
of Health or his/her designee; one
of whom shall be the Director of the Department of
Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental
Disabilities, and Hospitals
or his/her designee; one of whom shall be a representative of the
Rhode Island AFL-CIO; one of whom shall be a representative of the UNAP;
one of whom shall
be the President of the Hospital Association of Rhode
Island or his/her designee; one of whom
shall be Family Physician who is a member of the Rhode
Island Chronic Care Sustainability
Initiative Committee or
his/her designee; one of whom shall be the President of the American
of the Rhode Island Academy of Physician Assistants or
his/her designee; one of whom shall be
the Executive Director of the Rhode Island Medical
Society or his/her designee; one of whom
shall be the President of the Rhode Island Psychological
Association or his/her designee; one of
whom shall be the Executive Director of the Rhode Island
State Nurses Association or his/her
designee; one of whom shall be the Executive Director of the
National Association of Social
Workers Rhode Island
Chapter or his/her designee; one of whom shall be the President/CEO of
the Rhode Island Health Centers Association or his/her
designee; one of whom shall be the
President/CEO of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Rhode Island or his/her
designee; one of whom
shall be the Associate Dean of Medicine for Brown University
School of Public Health or his/her
designee; one of whom shall be President of United Healthcare
of Rhode Island or his/her
designee; one of whom shall be the CEO of Neighborhood Health
Plan of Rhode Island or his/her
designee; one of whom shall be the President of the Rhode
Island Council of Community Mental
Health Organizations or
his/her designee; and one of whom shall be the Executive Director of the
Drug and
Alcohol Treatment Association of Rhode Island or his/her designee.
In
lieu of any appointment of a member of the legislature to this commission, the
appointing authority may appoint a member of the general public
to serve in lieu of a legislator,
provided that the majority leader or minority leader of the
political party which is entitled to the
appointment consents to the appointment of the member of the
general public and the public
member is a resident of the State of
The
purpose of said commission shall be to make a comprehensive study of the
current
status of primary care and behavioral health in
analyses of the impact of primary care and behavioral health
service availability and delivery
system architecture on population outcomes; and of the
advisability of creating a Primary Care
Trust or other mechanism to
fund and otherwise support a comprehensive integrated primary care
and behavioral health system for all Rhode
Islanders. In studying this issue, the commission is
encouraged to:
(1)
Examine trends, current policies, and data pertaining to
health and primary care utilization trends;
(2)
Identify policy restrictions which currently prevent
primary care and behavioral health systems;
(3)
Identify and seek ways to remedy gaps in the system, specifically in the area
of
linkages and connections among providers and agencies in
delivering comprehensive,
community-based healthcare services;
(4)
Examine the role of multi payers within the market and potential innovative
delivery
systems and payment reforms.
(5)
Examine potential funding and grant opportunities to advance the
recommendations
of the commission.
Forthwith
upon passage of the resolution, the members of the commission shall meet at
the call of the Speaker of the House and President of the
Senate. The commission shall have the
authority to organize and form subcommittees, when deemed
appropriate by a majority of the
members.
Vacancies
in said commission shall be filled in the manner as the original appointment.
The
membership of said commission shall receive no compensation for their
services.
All
departments and agencies of the state shall furnish such advice and
information,
documentary and otherwise, to said commission and its agents as
is deemed necessary or
desirable by the commission to facilitate the purposes of this
resolution.
The
Joint Committee on Legislative Services is hereby authorized and directed to
provide
suitable quarters for said commission; and be it further
RESOLVED,
That the commission shall report its findings and
recommendations to the
Governor, the Secretary of
the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, and the General
Assembly no later than
January 28, 2014, and said commission shall expire on June 13, 2016.
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LC02883
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