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[ Index ]
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California Psychiatric Association
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*SB 2050 |
The priorities are:
1. Oppose any attempt by psychologists to expand their scope of practice, including efforts on their part to practice medicine through the acquisition of authority to prescribe brain medications.
2. Support legislation that provides for equity in health coverage for mental disorders and for nondiscrimination in the treatment of biologically based psychiatric illness. (AB 88, Thomson and SB 468, Polanco)
3. Encourage and support legislation which would assure that managed care systems adhere to fair and honest standards of operation and comply with appropriate standards of ethical care for both patients and physicians, including full disclosure of operating procedures and costs and protection of patient confidentiality. (specific issues prioritized by Government Affairs Committee that carry over to 1999 are utilization review and external review, and doctor termination.)
4. Seek adjustments to Medi-Cal and managed care fee schedules that assure adequate payment to psychiatrists for their services.
5. Protect the integrity of the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act (MICRA)
6. Advocate with respect to Medi-Cal and managed care formulary issues consistent with the policy adopted by the CPA Council at its March, 1997 meeting (see policy statement at end of this document).
7. Education for non-physician psychotherapists and family members with respect to the effects and side effects of psychiatric medications. (AB 253, Thomson)
8. Protecting the confidentiality of medical records, including addressing legal loopholes that allow pharmaceutical companies to get access to pharmacy records.
9. Pursue task force efforts already underway in southern California to update and revise the Lanterman Petris Short Act (LPS) in light of today's circumstances. Support legislation that would revise LPS and allow for mandatory outpatient treatment in certain well-defined circumstances.
10. Advocate with respect to issues relating to the severely mentally ill and the penal system in such a way as to assure that the severely mentally ill and sexual predators are not confused with one another.
11. Support legislation that embodies reasoned regulatory action relating to violence. Support legislation that discourages the purchase of handguns and places strong controls on the availability of all types of firearms to private citizens. CPA's legislative focus on domestic violence is to be on the negative impacts of domestic violence and on its prevention, not the legal and criminal aspects.
12. Advocate for reliance on the most up-to-date knowledge of child development in response to any proposed changes in or elaboration of adoption law.
13. Funding for Adult Systems of Care (AB 34, Steinberg, $50 million per year, increasing in annual $50 million increments to $350 million, to care for homeless mentally ill who are not in the penal system).
14. Seclusion and Restraint issues (SB 1143, Chesbro, AB 1442, Shelley).
15. Distribution and use of tobacco settlement money, seeking to assure that this settlement money goes to health care. (AB 100, Thomson, others).
Policy of California Psychiatric Association Regarding Medication Formularies
Adopted by CPA Council, March, 1997
Efficacy studies have demonstrated time and again that the effective prescription and use of appropriate neuropsychiatric drugs reduces morbidity and costs in the long run, and that the earlier in the course of a brain disorder an effective medication is used, the greater its effectiveness. For the good and welfare of the largest number of people, the California Psychiatric Association recommends that managed care companies and health insurance carriers be precluded from restricting a patient's access to any effective central nervous system medication where the patient's physician has determined that the patient would benefit from that medication.
The California Psychiatric Association supports legislation allowing any drug that is approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration to be approved for addition to the list of drugs covered by either Medi-Cal, Medicare, or health care plans for the purpose of treating psychiatric disorders.
The California Psychiatric Association believes that such legislation will be cost-effective and good social policy. Due to the severe side effects associated with medications presently included on the Medi-Cal list of contract drugs, and the drugs allowed by some managed care plans, for the treatment of psychosis and psychiatric disorders, many patients are unwilling to take the medications. In addition, some newer and more expensive drugs are much more effective. Allowing the use of the most effective drugs with the least side-effects may cost more out of pocket originally than providing a limited formulary. However, studies show that total expenditures for the treatment of psychosis and psychotic disorders, including nonpharmaceutical services such as hospitalization (or incarceration) are not less expensive for states with restricted formularies.
Doc: GA committee / priority 99, mod 3-99
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